Rising Dawn
by DawnBlazeAbigail99
Summary: The Three are instead Squirrelflight's and Brambleclaw's kits. Leafpool's kits never existed. Four kits are born but only three are destined to greatness. Dawnpaw is a blossoming young apprentice and is eagerly learning all she can to make the perfect warrior. It's only after she is visited in a dream by a mysterious character that the visions start.
1. Prologue

Morning light filtered through the thorny branches that were wound together to form the den that the ThunderClan cats called their nursery. Inside, Squirrelflight blinked open her bright green eyes and yawned widely, stretching her stiff legs out in the nest of moss and thrush feathers. Pulling herself slowly into a sitting position, she lapped at her ginger chest fur with vigorous licks of her tongue.

The entrance to the den rustled slightly and Squirrelflight looked up frozen in mid-lick. As her tongue retreated back into her mouth and she straightened in the nest, a tabby warrior pushed inside with a plump sparrow clamped tightly in his jaws. Squirrelflight purred a greeting to her mate and Brambleclaw set the bird onto the ground before he rubbed his muzzle along her cheek.

"Good morning, Brambleclaw," a tortoiseshell she-cat meowed, nestled in her nest with her tail wrapped around her sleeping three she-kits. Nodding to the sparrow she asked, "Is the prey still running? I haven't been out of the camp for a while."

Squirrelflight sniffed the prey and she hungrily started to eat. Brambleclaw shook his head and with a flick of his tail he replied, "Not exactly. This is the first decent catch I've had in a while. It looks like the snow is about to fall soon."

"Then it will have to wait," Ferncloud yawned, lifting her head wearily off her paws. "Squirrelflight's kits will be born any day now and we wouldn't want the little mites catching the sniffles so early on."

Squirrelflight's looked up from the bird and her ears twitched. She leaned down to nuzzle her round belly affectionately with her nose, sweeping her tail around her paws. Brambleclaw licked her ear, but his eyes contained a bittersweet gleam. The thought of _his_ kits being born into ThunderClan at any moment joyed him endlessly, but when he imagined the small bundles of fur catching greencough before having the chance to hunt or feel the adrenaline of racing into battle broke his heart.

"They'll be fine," Sorreltail assured with a tender gaze set on the troubled expectant mother. "Especially with both a mother and father so strong, no doubt they'll inherit Firestar's courage as well as his talent for attracting mischief, and the strength Goldenflower portrayed in raising her kits without a father to lend a paw."

Brambleclaw blinked at her, hardly surprised that she dodged the subject of Tigerstar and instead inverted praise in Goldenflower's memory. However, the tortoiseshell queen was correct. Brambleclaw knew of Firestar's—as well as the whole Clan's—suspicion in him as a young cat and Tawnypelt, too. Goldenflower had looked after him and his sister ever since the day they were born and she never stopped.

A sharp intake of breath from Squirrelflight brought him from his reverie and Brambleclaw turned his head sharply toward her with wide amber eyes. "What is it?" he demanded worriedly. "Is it the kits? Are they okay?"

"I'm fine," Squirrelflight silenced him with a blow to his ears with her tail. Ferncloud had risen to his paws when her denmate had gasped and Sorreltail had her ears pricked interestedly. "It was only a kick."

But just as the words had left his mouth, Squirrelflight flinched and she groaned softly at the spasm of pain. Brambleclaw turned his head to Ferncloud and the experienced she-cat leaped from her nest and raced out of the den. She called back over her shoulder as she hurried into the clearing, "I'll get Leafpool!"

Sorreltail rose from her lying position and moved slowly so she didn't wake her kits. Padding to Squirrelflight's side, she nosed Brambleclaw away and helped the ginger she-cat to lie in her nest, stretched out with her belly as prominent as ever. Her chest heaved as her breathing quickly escalated and she gritted her teeth tightly as a contraction rippled through her.

"I'm here!" Leafpool exclaimed, although slightly muffled by the herbs she carried in her mouth, she skidded to a stop as she pelted into the den with Ferncloud right behind her. Sorreltail backed away to the wall of the den, nudging her daughters awake. Ferncloud led Brambleclaw from the nursery, however insistent he was in staying. Grumbling, Sorreltail's kits exited the den slowly, still ignorant of the seriousness of the situation.

"It'll go quickly," Leafpool mewed to both Squirrelflight and Sorreltail, who was seated beside the light brown tabby medicine cat. Squirrelflight twitched her ears to show that she had heard and gritted her teeth, screwing her eyes shut at the intense pain as her belly rippled. When it had passed just as quickly as it had come, Squirrelflight panted heavily. "When?" she gasped.

Leafpool didn't reply at first. She placed one her white forepaws against her sister's bulging belly, ignoring as Squirrelflight growled threateningly at her. After a few heartbeats, Leafpool pulled her paw away. "Soon. Be ready for when I tell you." She turned to Ferncloud. "Can you fetch some water for her, please? There is fresh moss in my den you can use."

With a nod, the pale gray queen left the den. Sorreltail swept her tail across Squirrelflight's flank soothingly as she wailed pitifully at the pain of another contraction. Leafpool crouched beside her sister and Sorreltail retreated back to her nest in the corner of the den.

"Oh StarClan—" Squirrelflight was cut off and she moaned low and miserably.

"It might be best if you didn't speak at the moment, save your strength for when you will need it the most," Leafpool told her calmly. Squirrelflight shot her a reproachful glare but didn't say anything else, seeing as she was too preoccupied with the increasing quickness of her breath.

Ferncloud padded back into the den with wad of soaking moss hanging from her mouth. She set the moss beside Squirrelflight, and she licked up and swallowed the provided water eagerly. Leaning back against the feathers and moss od her nest, she barely had enough time to rest before Leafpool announced that it was time for her to begin pushing. Squirrelflight tensed and her claws scrabbled at the ground in front of her, raking up the dirt.

With a gasp from Squirrelflight, a small and wet bundle plopped into the nest. Leafpool leaned forward and nipped the sack with her sharp teeth. Dragging the kit closer to her, she lapped gently at its damp pelt with the small body wriggling under her vigorous tongue. As Leafpool placed the kit at its mother's belly she murmured softly, "A she-kit."

Squirrelflight craned her neck to see her daughter and she opened her mouth to say something, but then her jaw snapped closed and she hissed, squeezing her eyes shut. Sorreltail and Ferncloud both crept forward for a closer look at the new arrival, the she-cats' ears pricked a soft expression in their eyes.

"A tom this time!" Leafpool meowed a few heartbeats later and she set the male kit next to his sister, leaving him to suckle alongside his sibling while the medicine cat prepared for the next kit.

With a strangled cry from the strained ginger queen, the third kit was born. The first thing Leafpool realized that the kit wasn't breathing, the usual rise and fall of the chest was nonexistent. The light brown tabby nudged it with her nose and lapped at it fiercely with her tongue, but it still lay still as a stone. Squirrelflight leaned forward, curious as to why the kit wasn't crying, and her gaze clouded with sorrow at the sight of her kit.

"He's dead, Squirrelflight, I'm so sorry," Leafpool whispered, her voice laced with a sadness that was echoed in her dulled amber eyes. Setting the kit's body aside, Leafpool pulled the fourth and last kit to her. Freeing the kit, it squirmed almost immediately, bringing a sigh of relief from both the birthing queen and her sister. "Another she-kit," Leafpool murmured and the kit's mewls were silenced as she began to feed.

"I'll tell Brambleclaw," Sorreltail murmured.

With a flick of her tail she left the den. Squirrelflight, exhausted, rested her head on her paws and nestled her bushy tail around her kits. Blinking her eyes open and closed, she felt the weariness dragging at her consciousness, lulling her to sleep. But she willed herself to stay awake, just until Brambleclaw came inside to receive both the good and the bad news. Her throat suddenly seemed clogged as she thought of the kit that never had the experience of taking his first breath. Squirrelflight's gaze swiveled to the limp bundle of brown tabby fur and a silent wail escaped her.

The nursery trembled and Brambleclaw burst inside, his amber eyes wide as they found Squirrelflight curled around three kits. With a softened gaze, the ThunderClan deputy crept forward hesitantly and he peered into the nest. The quiet mewls and squeaks of the newborn kits brought a delighted glimmer to Brambleclaw's eyes and he purred, washing his mate's face with licks.

Leafpool slipped by him and left the den with a glance back over her shoulder. The other cats missed the longing in her gaze as she looked at her sister and her mate, and their kits. She had chosen to come back after leaving the Clans with Crowfeather and she had never regretted it, but the thought of what could have happened and the kits she and the WindClan warrior could have made her wish that she could have stayed with him. Shaking herself lightly, Leafpool turned away and she continued into the clearing where the rest of ThunderClan was surely to be waiting.

"They're beautiful," Brambleclaw murmured, his unusually warm amber gaze captured by the three kits at Squirrelflight's belly. He leaned down and touched each of their heads with his nose. Suddenly, a puzzled crossed his face. "Sorreltail said that there were four."

Squirrelflight resisted the urge to wail the loss to StarClan and she unwound her tail from her kits and gestured to the small lump of fur lying pitifully still on the ground. Brambleclaw's excitement was marred and he became distant, gazing sadly at the kit. He stepped forward warily and nosed it, as if expecting the kit to respond.

With a gasp, the kit shuddered and Brambleclaw pulled away in surprise immediately. Ferncloud leaped to her paws. She raced from the den, all the while calling out for Leafpool. Squirrelflight's breaths came in short bursts as she watched the kit stumble blindly. "He was dead," she whispered with wide eyes.

The kit gave a high-pitched cry and Brambleclaw blinked, his initial shock starting to fade. He sniffed the kit, recoiling as a tiny paw struck his nose. Squirrelflight managed a twitch of her whiskers and she touched Brambleclaw's tail with hers, gaining his attention. "He's hungry," she mewed softly and Brambleclaw nodded, grasping the kit's scruff with his teeth. He dropped him at Squirrelflight's belly and the kit burrowed into her, pressing his paws into her as he suckled.

"I think he's fine," Squirrelflight purred and she rasped her tongue over the son she had believed to be dead.

"What happened?" Leafpool asked as she reentered the nursery. Approaching her sister's nest, she gazed inside and her eyes widened considerably as she spotted the supposedly dead kit. "I don't understand," she murmured, confused. "The kit was dead when I left, I'm sure of it."

Brambleclaw shrugged. "I think StarClan had other plans."

"You think StarClan had something to do with this? Bringing the kit back to life?" Leafpool asked, incredulous. She examined the kit quickly with the watchful parents watching over her. When she sat up, she seemed more confused than ever. "He's perfectly fine. Maybe you're right Brambleclaw and StarClan really did allow him to live." Straightening, Leafpool made to leave. "I'll bring you some borage later," she meowed over her shoulder as she left.

Alone, Brambleclaw shifted so that he was sitting near Squirrelflight's head. Giving his mate a swift lick to her ear, he meowed, "What should we name them?"

Squirrelflight was quiet in the beginning. She stared down at each of them, looking over their various pelt colors and their features. The she-kits were both had fluffy fur, just like Squirrelflight when she had been a kit. The first had a golden fur with tabby stripes. The other was a tortoiseshell with a white muzzle, chest, and belly. "I like Dawnkit for the golden tabby she-kit, her fur reminds of the sun at dawn. The tortoiseshell and white can be Birdkit."

The tip of Brambleclaw's tail quivered and he lowered his head, pressing his muzzle against her shoulder. "I like them," he meowed. Shifting his gaze to his sons, he turned his head to the side as he studied them. The broad shoulders of one, the dark ginger, were just like Brambleclaw's. The dark ginger tom was the biggest of the kits, while the smallest was the other tom, a brown tabby with a lithe build. "The dark ginger tom can be Redkit, and the brown tabby will be Bravekit, for showing that he won't ever give up, even in StarClan's paws."

"Perfect," Squirrelflight breathed. Sweeping her tail over each of them, she yawned and her eyelids drooped tiredly. Brambleclaw stroked his tail across his mate's flank and he licked her ear. "Go to sleep," he murmured softly, barely loud enough for her to hear and comprehend. "The kits will be here when you wake up, and so will I."

Squirrelflight tucked her tail once again around her kits and she laid her head on the moss of her nest. Her eyes closed slowly and it was several heartbeats before her breathing deepened and slowed. Brambleclaw watched her for a few moments before looked at his kits again. Only Bravekit was still feeding while the other three had curled up together, resting against their mother's soft belly fur that provided a source of warmth that the chilly air denied them.

Brambleclaw looked up as Sandstorm entered the den, her pale ginger fur and green eyes shining. She dipped her head to the deputy before going to the edge of her daughter's nest, locking her gaze on the kits. A purr rumbled in her throat and she looked up at Brambleclaw. "They're all charming," she meowed. With an amused twitch of her whiskers she went on, "The little golden kit is so pretty, she looks to be as bright as the sun."

"Dawnkit," Brambleclaw told her, eyes shining with newfound pride. He explained every name to Sandstorm and the pale ginger she-cat praised each one, especially Bravekit as they watched him curl up beside the fluffy Dawnkit.

"I'll leave you alone, then. Congratulations, Brambleclaw, tell Squirrelflight that I visited," Sandstorm meowed and she waved her tail in farewell before sliding through the nursery entrance. As she left, Brambleclaw sighed, content with his surroundings. His mind was still racing, but he had quieted the worries long ago.

He suddenly felt a new presence in the air around him, in the nursery. Looking around, his eyes narrowed warily as he spotted the faint outline of a large cat sitting in the corner of the den. Gleaming amber eyes stared back at Brambleclaw and the black tabby stripes on dark brown fur was just visible to him. Brambleclaw growled a warning. "You won't have my kits," he hissed as the fur along his spine rose threateningly.

Tigerstar blinked and then faded into the familiar wall of the nursery. Brambleclaw forced his fur to lie flat and he sheathed his claws. With one last glance in Tigerstar's direction, Brambleclaw turned his back on him, shifting himself so that he was leaning protectively over his sleeping kits and mate. A sudden worry washed through him and he gazed down at his sons and daughters, wondering silently whether his father would penetrate their dreams once they became old enough.

Vowing to protect his kits from Tigerstar, and possibly Hawkfrost, Brambleclaw lied down beside Squirrelflight's nest, tucking his paws under him. Giving each of his kits a lick on their heads, he closed his eyes and set his head onto his paws. With the day's events whirling in his mind, Brambleclaw fell slowly into unconsciousness.


	2. Chapter 1

**ThunderClan**  
><strong>Leader<strong> Firestar-ginger tom with a flame-colored pelt  
><strong>Apprentice Redpaw<br>Deputy** Brambleclaw-dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes  
><strong>Apprentice Berrypaw<strong>  
><strong>Medicine Cat<strong> Leafpool-light brown tabby she-cat  
><strong>Warriors<br>**Dustpelt-dark brown tabby tom  
><strong>Apprentice Hazelpaw<br>**Sandstorm-pale ginger she-cat with green eyes  
><strong>Apprentice Honeypaw<strong>  
>Cloudtail-long-haired white tom with blue eyes<br>**Apprentice Cinderpaw**  
>Brackenfur-golden brown tabby tom<br>**Apprentice Birdpaw**  
>Sorreltail-tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes<br>**Apprentice Dawnpaw**  
>Squirrelflight-dark ginger she-cat with green eyes<br>Thornclaw-golden brown tabby tom  
><strong>Apprentice Poppypaw<strong>  
>Ashfur-pale gray tom with darker flecks and blue eyes<br>Spiderleg-long-limbed black tom with a brown underbelly  
><strong>Apprentice Mousepaw<strong>  
>Brook Where Small Fish Swim (Brook)-brown tabby she-cat<br>Stormfur-gray tom with amber eyes  
><strong>Apprentice Bravepaw<strong>  
>Whitewing-white she-cat with green eyes<br>Birchfall-light brown tabby tom  
><strong>Apprentices <strong>  
>Berrypaw-cream-colored tom<br>Hazelpaw-small gray and white she-cat  
>Mousepaw-gray and white tom<br>Poppypaw-tortoiseshell she-cat  
>Honeypaw-light brown tabby she-cat<br>Cinderpaw-gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes  
>Dawnpaw-golden tabby she-cat with green eyes<br>Redpaw-dark ginger tom with amber eyes  
>Birdpaw-tortoiseshell she-cat with a white underbelly, chest, and muzzle<br>Bravepaw-brown tabby tom with green eyes  
><strong>Queens<strong>  
>Ferncloud-pale gray she-cat with darker flecks and blue eyes; mother of Dustpelt's kit (Robinkit)<br>Brightheart-ginger and white she-cat; expecting Cloudtail's kits  
>Daisy-long-furred cream she-cat<br>**Elders**  
>Mousefur-dusky brown she-cat<br>Longtail-pale tabby tom with black stripes

**ShadowClan**  
><strong>Leader<strong> Blackstar-large white tom with jet black paws  
><strong>Deputy<strong> Russetfur-dark ginger she-cat  
><strong>Medicine Cat<strong> Littlecloud-very small tabby tom  
><strong>Warriors<strong>  
>Oakfur-small brown tom<br>Rowanclaw-ginger tom  
><strong>Apprentice Ivypaw<strong>  
>Smokefoot-black tom<br>**Apprentice Owlpaw**  
>Snowbird-pure white she-cat<br>**Queens**  
>Tawnypelt-tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes<br>**Elders**  
>Cedarheart-dark gray tom<br>Tallpoppy-long-legged light brown tabby she-cat

**WindClan**  
><strong>Leader <strong>Onestar-brown tabby tom  
><strong>Deputy <strong>Ashfoot-gray she-cat  
><strong>Medicine Cat<strong> Barkface-short-tailed brown tom  
><strong>Apprentice Kestrelpaw<strong>  
><strong>Warriors<strong>  
>Tornear-tabby tom<br>**Apprentice Harepaw**  
>Crowfeather-dark gray tom<br>**Apprentice Heatherpaw**  
>Owlwhisker-light brown tabby tom<br>Whitetail-small white she-cat  
>Nightcloud-black she-cat<br>Weaslefur-ginger tom with white paws  
><strong>Elders<strong>  
>Morningflower-very old tortoiseshell queen<br>Webfoot-dark gray tabby tom

**RiverClan**  
><strong>Leader<strong> Leopardstar-unusually spotted golden tabby she-cat  
><strong>Deputy<strong> Mistyfoot-gray she-cat with blue eyes  
><strong>Apprentice Dapplepaw<strong>  
><strong>Medicine Cat<strong> Mothwing-dapple golden she-cat  
><strong>Apprentice Willowpaw<strong>  
><strong>Warriors<strong>  
>Blackclaw-smoky black tom<br>Voletooth-small brown tabby tom  
><strong>Apprentice Minnowpaw<strong>  
>Reedwhisker-black tom<br>**Apprentice Pouncepaw**  
>Mosspelt-tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes<br>**Apprentice Pebblepaw**  
>Beechfur-light brown tom<br>Rippletail-dark gray tabby tom  
><strong>Queens<strong>  
>Dawnflower-pale gray tabby tom<br>**Elders**  
>Swallowtail-dark tabby she-cat<br>Stonestream-gray tom

* * *

><p>"Dawnpaw, hurry up before you fall too far behind," her mentor's yowl pierced the usually calm air of the ThunderClan forest, shaking Dawnpaw of the weariness that dragged at her paws early in the morning. She blinked her leaf-green eyes and padded after Sorreltail and Squirrelflight, yawning as she went. Her mother touched her shoulder with the tip of her shoulder with concern shining in her eyes.<p>

"Are you alright? What did you do all last night to prevent you from getting a good night's rest?" Squirrelflight asked and Dawnpaw shook off her tail, not wanted sympathy from her.

The truth was that she had nightmares all through the night and of the same thing, constantly waking her up. The swarm of teeth and claws that descended down on her Clanmates was always the part of the dream where she would wake to safety of the apprentices' den, panting heavily as if she had run all the way to the lake and back.

"I'm fine," Dawnpaw shook herself lightly, flicking the tip of her tail. "Just a few nightmares." Sorreltail and Squirrelflight exchanged a suspicious glance that angered Dawnpaw. _What do they think I was doing? Chasing squirrels that late at night?_

"Alright then," Sorreltail meowed, not sounding believable at all. She turned away and took the lead of the patrol, trotting along the path toward the WindClan border. Dawnpaw took up the rear, determined to show them that she wasn't going to drop unconscious while on patrol.

Her muscles ached as she lengthened her stride to keep up with the bigger she-cats. After the hard battle training session with her other siblings and their apprentices the day before, it didn't help that Sorreltail seemed to be testing her endurance as well as agility. Dawnpaw ducked under a branch that the other two had leaped over, being too big to do as Dawnpaw had done.

Skidding to a stop as she spotted Sorreltail and Squirrelflight suddenly freeze, Dawnpaw nearly bumped into them, but she dug her claws into the compact dirt under her paws and slowed herself. Confused at their actions, Dawnpaw opened her mouth to ask them about it but a mouthful of her mother's fluffy tail fur muffled her voice.

Even more bewildered, Dawnpaw craned her neck to peer around them and she followed her mentor's gaze and she resisted the urge to release an outraged hiss at the sight of the few WindClan warriors snooping around on ThunderClan territory. The cats seemed to be having trouble finding safe passage through the undergrowth. One of them, a dark tom growled softly to himself as he stepped on a thorn. Dawnpaw registered with satisfaction that they were having a little trouble navigating through the thick foliage.

"Mouse-brains," Squirrelflight hissed under her breath, her whiskers twitching slightly in amusement as she watched the struggling WindClan cats. With a shrug, she stepped from the bush into full view of the enemy warriors. Sorreltail immediately followed her lead and Dawnpaw quickly slid in beside them. "What are you doing on ThunderClan territory?" Squirrelflight growled, the fur along her spine rising threateningly.

"I'm not sure, but it looks like they aren't getting too far," Dawnpaw meowed mockingly. She flicked her tail. "I don't think that they're much of a threat, though. They are clumsy in the undergrowth." Sorreltail sent a sharp glance her way, silencing her. She narrowed her eyes at the leader of the patrol, a tabby tom that Dawnpaw recognized as Tornear from Gatherings, and he glared back with a reproachful gaze.

"It seems your daughter has inherited the trait of not being able to keep her mouth shut when she is supposed to, Squirrelflight," a very dark gray tom meowed and Dawnpaw bared her teeth in a snarl. She glanced at her mother, but Squirrelflight ignored the jab, focusing on Tornear. Thinking it to be best, Dawnpaw swallowed the oncoming growl rising in her throat and her tail twitched agitatedly.

"I think it would be best if you left ThunderClan territory right now," Sorreltail meowed, her muscles tensing in preparation of a fight.

Tornear let a soft hiss escape from behind his clenched teeth and he lashed his tail. "Fine, we won't make do with this bramble-infested patch of land anyway," he meowed, turning immediately and heading back in the direction of WindClan territory. A light brown she-cat, most likely an apprentice followed after him without hesitating, unlike the gray tom who now seemed to have a far-away look in his eyes, almost dazed. Twitching his ears and his gaze clearing, he gave the ThunderClan warriors one last scornful look before turning his back on them.

Squirrelflight and Sorreltail were still tensed, even as the WindClan cats stalked away. Dawnpaw watched her mother closely, waiting until the dark ginger she-cat had relaxed the rippling muscles under her well-groomed pelt. Sorreltail sighed in relief as the warriors were swallowed up by the undergrowth and she turned to her apprentice. "You really shouldn't provoke them, Dawnpaw, you know how grumpy those hare-brained cats are, especially Crowfeather."

"The dark gray tom? Yeah, I noticed," Dawnpaw flicked the tip of her tail. She glanced at Squirrelflight again. "Are we going to follow them to the border?" she asked.

Squirrelflight shook her head. "No, I trust that they will know better than to hang around in ThunderClan territory. We'll report back to Firestar when we get back to camp after scouting the rest of the border," she meowed and Dawnpaw nodded, satisfied, for now.

The patrol continued with their patrol, reinstating the border line with fresh ThunderClan markings. They found no more WindClan warriors on their territory and so they turned back, returning back to the camp just after sunhigh. As the patrol cleared the entrance tunnel, Squirrelflight and Sorreltail immediately padded to where Firestar had been sharing a mouse with Sandstorm while Dawnpaw was allowed to have the rest of the day for herself.

Dawnpaw happily made her way to the apprentices den, where she had spotted her brother and sister, Redpaw and Birdpaw, sharing tongues with Berrypaw and Mousepaw. Birdpaw looked up with gleaming amber eyes as Dawnpaw neared. "You're back early," she continued. "Did WindClan cause any trouble for you?"

"Of course they did, if I know those rabbit-chasers," Berrypaw snorted.

"Actually, we found them inside the border, on our territory," Dawnpaw meowed almost casually, giving her paw a lick and then bringing it deftly over her ear. She was about to repeat the action for her opposite ear when she realized that her companions were all staring at her in surprise. "What?" she asked, slightly confused as to why they were suddenly interested in her and she wanted to know.

"How can you say it like it wasn't a big deal?" Redpaw questioned, incredulous. "There were WindClan cats in _ThunderClan_ territory! Of course we were taken back by you careless tone. They could have posed a real threat to the Clan."

"Honestly they weren't exactly a threat to us. If they would have even tried to attack a patrol, any cat with half-decent hearing could have heard them tramping around in the undergrowth like a fish out of water, completely uncomfortable of their surroundings. Though it didn't help their prickly attitudes, particularly one of them Squirrelflight called Crowfeather," Dawnpaw told them, returning to her grooming, smoothing down a hard to reach grubby patch of fur on her shoulder.

"Still, I don't like the thought of WindClan cats in our territory without us knowing." Birdpaw shuddered at Redpaw's words, agreeing with him as she nodded along with Berrypaw and Mousepaw. Dawnpaw paused from her washing and she shrugged, pushing away the memory of her patrol's confrontation earlier that morning. She wasn't very interested with the day's events so far.

"Is Bravepaw out on patrol?" Dawnpaw asked, changing the subject to her other brother. Bravepaw was small for his age; Squirrelflight had told Dawnpaw as well as Birdpaw and Redpaw that when she had given birth to them Bravepaw had actually been dead for his first few moments in the world outside their mother. Dawnpaw sympathized for her brother, but she never showed it around him—Bravepaw was sensitive about how other cats felt or thought about him.

"Stormfur took him out hunting with Cinderpaw and Cloudtail," Hazelpaw meowed, sitting beside Dawnpaw as she arrived. "He looked almost sick though. I was about to order him to Leafpool's den before he went out."

"He wouldn't have listened anyway. Bravepaw doesn't like to be told what to do," Redpaw mewed and Birdpaw nodded in agreement. Hazelpaw murmured in a half-hearted agreement, her mind completely someplace elsewhere.

"What are you apprentices doing around gossiping in the middle of the day when you could be hunting for the Clan?" Mousefur's indignant call caused most of them to startle greatly because of the ongoing silence between all of them. Berrypaw turned to the elder with a disbelieving grunt.

"I went hunting earlier this morning before dawn, while you were still in your nest, snoring away!" he hissed and Mousefur's eyes narrowed dangerously. Longtail, her fellow denmate, laid a comforting tail on her shoulder, but she shook it off almost immediately. However, before she could give a retort, Berrypaw's mentor, Brambleclaw, bounded up, his amber eyes flashing.

"Berrypaw! Respect the cats who have been in your place before. Mousefur has served her time for the Clan and she has a right to boss you around. Besides, all you caught this morning was a measly finch, I think she is right. You'll be going on a hunting patrol with Honeypaw, Sandstorm, and Brook," Brambleclaw meowed and Berrypaw had enough sense to look ashamed as the ThunderClan deputy scolded his apprentice.

Dawnpaw felt a moment of pride to be Brambleclaw's daughter. Of course she and her littermates were well-known for being the deputy's children as well as Firestar's grandchildren, but her father was everything that she wanted to be as a warrior; strong, intelligent, a swift thinker, as well as a fierce fighter and resourceful hunter—even though Squirrelflight was respected with the hunting title, mostly.

"Alright," Berrypaw muttered, staring at his paws while his ears flattened to his skull. Brambleclaw, looking pleased, dismissed his apprentice with a flick of his tail and Berrypaw slinked off to where his newly discovered hunting party was waiting for him. Mousefur smoothed down the raised fur on her spine and dipped her head to Brambleclaw gratefully before she sat back down beside an amused Longtail.

"He had it coming, some cat needs to teach him not to be so prickly," Redpaw snorted, finding amusement in Berrypaw's scolding. His voice was brimming with mirth. Brambleclaw sighed disappointedly, watching as Berrypaw sulked after his Clanmates. The large dark tabby turned to the apprentices after the cream tom had disappeared into the tunnel.

"I don't know how he became so uptight. He wasn't nearly like that when he was kit," Brambleclaw meowed thoughtfully. "Maybe it was because he is the ThunderClan deputy's apprentice."

"I'm Firestar's apprentice and I'm not like Berrypaw! Thank StarClan!" Redpaw breathed a dramatic sigh of relief. Hazelpaw rolled her eyes at Dawnpaw, who just shook her head. Brambleclaw flicked his ears and lashed out a playful paw, cuffing his son's ears. Redpaw dodged, ducking at the last moment and coming up with a triumphant as well as smug expression. "What, it's true!"

"Thank StarClan all my other children are actually sane!" Brambleclaw exclaimed teasingly and Redpaw pretended to look hurt before he launched himself at the bigger cat, taking him by surprise. Birdpaw jumped back with a hiss as Brambleclaw and Redpaw nearly ran into her.

As the two scuffled on the sandy ground, Squirrelflight made her appearance. "Can't you two go one day without rolling in the dirt?" she sighed exasperatedly. The dark ginger she-cat lunged forward to seize Redpaw by his scruff and plop her son at her paws. He was almost as big as she was, but she was still determined to wash the grime from his pelt, flattening the unkempt patches of fur that stood up in random areas.

"Squirrelflight, stop, let me go!" Redpaw squirmed under her fierce tongue, but he couldn't escape her grasp. Dawnpaw let out a _mrrow_ of laughter at the uplifting scene. Brambleclaw hauled himself off the ground with a satisfied gleam in his bright eyes. He sidled over to Dawnpaw and Hazelpaw, watching with obvious glee as Squirrelflight groomed a resistant Redpaw.

Brambleclaw turned around to pad away as Squirrelflight finished Redpaw's cleaning. "Where do you think you're going?" she growled playfully, bounding toward him with one inclined goal. "What made you think that you were so safe from my wrath?"

Dawnpaw watched happily as her mother chased Brambleclaw around the camp, until the tabby deputy gave in, allowing Squirrelflight to tackle him to the ground and assault him with licks. Truly contented by the peaceful air of the camp, Dawnpaw shifted her gaze around the clearing. Some warriors were sharing tongues outside the warriors' den or watching their two Clanmates; Firestar was looking down at them with a proud stare; Robinkit, Ferncloud's and Dustpelt's daughter, was playing with Poppypaw outside the nursery while Ferncloud and Brightheart looked on, the ginger and white she-cat's belly bulging with her unborn kits.

A soft breeze blew in Dawnpaw's face and her limbs tensed when she scented the horrifying smell of blood in the wind. It had not been there before and she was momentarily confused at her finding, Heartbeats passed and the scent was growing stronger with every one, until the entrance tunnel of the camp rustled and a harried-looking Bravepaw.

Dawnpaw leapt to her paws as Stormfur and Cinderpaw followed him, carrying a ragged and torn Cloudtail between them, the white warrior hanging like deadweight and his underside stained with scarlet blood. There was a cry of terror as Brightheart pelted from Ferncloud's side to Cloudtail. Leafpool had already appeared from inside her den with her usual calm disposition, and the light tabby medicine cat guided Stormfur and Cinderpaw into her den, Cloudtail disappearing from view, as well as Brightheart.

Firestar had bounded down from his ledge and he approached a stricken Bravepaw. "What happened to Cloudtail?" he asked the apprentice while every other cat listened closely. Dawnpaw crept closer, knowing that Bravepaw was likely to speak in a soft tone.

"We were near the ShadowClan border and Cloudtail was stalking a rabbit. When he pounced, though, he overestimated the jump and landed on the fox trap. It closed on his belly and it took forever for Stormfur to dig loose the trap. He and Cinderpaw carried him back to camp," Bravepaw explained in a rush, almost incoherent as he started to shake.

Birdpaw brushed by Dawnpaw and she went to Bravepaw, not hesitating to wrap herself around her brother and comfortingly licking his face. Bravepaw leaned into her as Squirrelflight padded over with wide green eyes. Brambleclaw joined Firestar as the ThunderClan leader began to retreat from Bravepaw. They climbed the tumble of rocks together and disappeared into Firestar's den.

Dawnpaw turned to Hazelpaw. "Do you think Cloudtail will be alright?" the older apprentice asked her anxiously and Dawnpaw blinked, unsure of what to say in response. Cloudtail's wound was certainly life-threatening and she had no idea how much blood her Clanmate had lost in the treacherous journey back to camp.

"I don't know," she answered softly, truthfully. "But I know that Leafpool will do whatever she can to delay his transfer to StarClan."

**FINALLY. That's all I can say. I've finally finished this and I hope that you all will enjoy this part at least. So far, I can't give any promises on the next update, but school ends next Friday, so I will have more time to write. Please review! They're what actually motivated me to continue the story.**


	3. Chapter 2

A cool, morning breeze whispered through the bramble tendrils of the apprentices' den, ruffling Dawnpaw's fur as she stirred in her nest beside Birdpaw. The golden apprentice's eyes fluttered open and she yawned, lifting her head off her paws. Blinking away sleep from her eyes, Dawnpaw hauled herself to her paws, careful not to disturb Birdpaw, who still slept soundly, curled up in their shared nest. Gazing around the den, she saw that Mousepaw and Honeypaw had already left their nests, probably on the dawn patrol.

With a sigh, Dawnpaw slid out of the den, stepping over Poppypaw's tortoiseshell tail on her way out. She lifted her face to the streams of sunlight shining through the topmost branches overhead, basking in the newfound warmth. She stretched her muscles, one leg at a time, and relished in the heat sinking into her fur and the warmth spreading from her nose to tail tip.

Dawnpaw straightened, shaking out her long tabby pelt, before padding toward the fresh-kill pile. Nosing through the choices, she chose a sparrow for herself and a large raven that she would take to the elders for their morning meal. Carrying the two birds by their wings, Dawnpaw made her way to elders' den. She slipped inside the hazel bush, finding that Longtail was still sleeping while Mousefur was grooming her dull brown fur. The old she-cat lifted her gaze from her pelt and flicked her ears in welcome.

Dropping the birds onto the ground, Dawnpaw meowed quietly so as to not wake the sleeping tom, "I thought you and Longtail would be hungry."

Mousefur purred, leaning forward to sniff the raven. Giving a satisfied nod, the she-cat began to strip the creature of its feathers with her teeth. "Thanks, Dawnpaw," she murmured after spitting out a mouthful of feathers. Dawnpaw dipped her head to Mousefur and she picked up her sparrow before pushing out of the den.

After making her way to the apprentices' den, Dawnpaw settled just outside the entrance, dropping the sparrow at her paws and crouching down to pluck the brown plumage from the body of the bird. Once she was satisfied that all of the feathers had been removed, she began to devour the prey. Chewing, swallowing, and then taking another bite, Dawnpaw looked up as she sensed a cat nearing.

"Is your brother still sleeping?" Firestar asked her. Dawnpaw nodded and he rolled his eyes with an agitated flick of his tail. He pushed his head into the apprentices' den and Dawnpaw heard his slightly muffled voice waking Redpaw, as well as Poppypaw. Her whiskers twitched in amusement as she picked up on her brother's weary protest.

Firestar pulled away from the den entrance with Redpaw and Poppypaw soon following after him. Both of the apprentices had never been early risers and Dawnpaw watched with amusement as they padded slowly and heavily to where Thornclaw was sitting near the camp entrance. She silently hoped that the four were not going on a hunting patrol because with Redpaw's and Poppypaw's sleepy state, the prey would be easily alerted to the hunters' presence in the forest.

A flash of ginger and white fur caught her eye, and, after taking another mouthful of sparrow meat, Dawnpaw turned her head to the medicine cats' den as Brightheart slipped inside. It had been almost a quarter moon since Cloudtail's run-in with the fox trap and the white warrior had managed to pull through the first few days after the accident without infection, Leafpool's herbs warding away any sign of infection after that. Dawnpaw was sure that Cloudtail would be okay and also prayed to StarClan for his sake, and for Brightheart and their unborn kits.

Brightheart was due to give birth any day now, and despite Leafpool's attempts to keep the heavily pregnant she-cat confined to the nursery, Brightheart insisted on visiting her mate and bringing him prey. Robinkit was extremely excited about the prospect of new denmates, after being the only kit in the nursery for two moons.

Since Cloudtail was no longer able to mentor Cinderpaw for the time being, Firestar had given Cinderpaw's apprenticeship to Squirrelflight. Dawnpaw knew that her mother was nervous about mentoring her first apprentice, but from what Cinderpaw had been saying to her the night before, Squirrelflight was turning out to be a great mentor.

As Dawnpaw finished off the sparrow, the entrance tunnel to the camp trembled, announcing the return of the dawn patrol. Brambleclaw stood from his spot beside Squirrelflight under the Highledge, going to hear the patrol's report. Sandstorm and Spiderleg dismissed their apprentices as they met the ThunderClan deputy halfway. Mousepaw and Honeypaw immediately padded to the fresh-kill pile, both taking a mouse from the mound.

"How was the patrol?" Dawnpaw asked as the two settled down beside her. The two shared a quick glance, so swift that Dawnpaw almost missed it, and still thought that she had imagine it at first, until they didn't answer her at first.

"Fine, the borders were quiet this morning," Honeypaw murmured, avoiding Dawnpaw's curious gaze. Her attention remained entrapped by her meal, and Mousepaw was just as evasive. This, of course, only caused Dawnpaw to become more interested in their patrol. However, instead of prying the information from the two unwilling apprentices, Dawnpaw turned her gaze away and to where Sandstorm and Spiderleg were being led into Firestar's den with Brambleclaw in the lead. Obviously something happened on the patrol, and Dawnpaw suspected that Sandstorm had told Honeypaw and Mousepaw to keep their mouths shut.

Dawnpaw didn't have to wait long, though. Soon after Firestar's patrol had come back from their hunting patrol, laden with freshly caught prey, ThunderClan's leader had disappeared into his den where his deputy, mate, and Spiderleg were waiting. Redpaw and Poppypaw joined their denmates outside their den, and soon the rest of the apprentices had woken from sleep at the sound of Firestar's yowl, announcing a Clan meeting.

The ThunderClan cats slowly assembled below the Highledge and Dawnpaw stayed by Honeypaw's side as they situated near the back of the throng beside Birchfall and Dustpelt. Firestar stood with Sandstorm and Spiderleg at his side, quieting the low, wondering murmurs of his Clan with a wave of his tail before addressing them.

"Cats of ThunderClan, Sandstorm's dawn patrol have revealed more evidence of WindClan's disregard for our border with them," Firestar meowed, and Dawnpaw sent a glance Honeypaw's way, finding her to be nodding at Firestar's news.

Firestar let Sandstorm take his place and the pale ginger she-cat began to describe the evidence the patrol had found. "There were rabbit and squirrel bones on _our_ side of the border, and they hadn't been there before this morning, because yesterday's patrol would have mentioned it. The bones were in plain sight, almost purposefully. The whole area even reeked of WindClan cats, too overwhelming to sort out one individual cat from another."

Before Sandstorm had even finished her detailed explanation, outraged yowls shook the clearing and cats had sprung to their paws, shouting furious insults to the moor cats. Honeypaw crouched low to the ground with her ears pressed back against her skull, fur brushing Dawnpaw as the golden she-cat's growls joined Dustpelt's beside her.

"Silence!" Firestar yowled, moving forward as Sandstorm fell back to sit beside a reserved Spiderleg. A hush fell over the cats as their leader commanded quiet and Dawnpaw narrowed her eyes, waiting for Firestar's choice of action. "I believe it is time for WindClan to realize that the time for stealing prey is over. Tomorrow night, I will lead a battle patrol into WindClan territory and we will launch an attack that will hopefully stop Onestar from continuing to provoke us."

Shouts of approval rang around the clearing and Dawnpaw's paws tingled with excitement at the prospect of going into battle, but her enthusiasm quickly faltered when she realized that Firestar would surely not take an apprentice who has only been training for two moons, one of the youngest cats in the Clan until Brightheart's kits were born.

Soon after Firestar's proclamation the Clan split into several small groups, cats muttering excitedly to one another about the coming battle against WindClan. Dawnpaw turned to Honeypaw. "How come you didn't tell me what happened on the patrol?" she demanded an answer. Honeypaw cringed away from her.

"Sandstorm told us not to! She said that by the time Firestar got back from hunting the news would have spread all around camp!" Honeypaw explained, her eyes wide. Dawnpaw nodded in acceptance, mulling over the recent news.

She was shaken from her thoughts by Sorreltail's nearing pawsteps. "Dawnpaw, we'll be training today with Cinderpaw, Berrypaw, Hazelpaw and their mentors," the tortoiseshell and white she-cat meowed. Dawnpaw flicked her tail and, with a lasting glance at Honeypaw, followed her mentor to where the six other cats were waiting near the tunnel entrance.

Brambleclaw nodded to Sorreltail and with a flick of his tail, he plunged into the main camp exit with the others following closely behind him. Dawnpaw fell in beside the other apprentices to take up the rear while the warriors led the way to the training hollow. Their strides gradually becoming longer and their speed increasing, Dawnpaw began to fall behind Cinderpaw and the gray she-cat's longer legs, but she remained ahead of Hazelpaw and Berrypaw, though by just a whisker.

As the sandy hollow grew steadily nearer, Dawnpaw slowed to a trot, catching her breath as Hazelpaw and Berrypaw raced past her right into the clearing. She followed after, finding that Cinderpaw had slowed herself down as well. Their mentors were waiting for them, Brambleclaw and Dustpelt shared an exasperated glance as their apprentices doubled over, panting heavily from lack of oxygen.

Leaving the other two mentors to their own devices, Sorreltail and Squirrelflight turned to Cinderpaw and Dawnpaw. "Once those two are finished with their recovery, we'll be practicing partner fighting. All the apprentices should learn to fight like this, because they will most likely be the cats to back up each other. Remember: strength in numbers," Sorreltail meowed.

"Remember, in partner fighting, your ally with defend you from behind, helping out whenever the opponent gains ground against you, as well as fending off any other opposing cats while you get the job down. Together, you both move as one," Squirrelflight continued.

"And together, you both can be a very dangerous and lethal addition to ThunderClan," Brambleclaw added. "It's been used plenty of times before, popular among littermates together in battle as well as close-knit Clanmates as in mates or fellow denmates."

"So Hazelpaw will come at Cinderpaw and Dawnpaw will back her up, using the battle techniques that you have been taught before now," Dustpelt instructed. Berrypaw opened his mouth to protest about his lack of participating, but when Brambleclaw shot him a warning glare he obviously thought better of it and his jaw shut.

Hazelpaw dropped her belly to the ground, her gaze entrapped by Cinderpaw. The gray she-cat didn't have enough time to react before Hazelpaw had leapt into the air; landing heavily onto Cinderpaw's back, quickly flattening her to the ground under the weight of her larger attacker. Dawnpaw reacted instinctively and threw herself against Hazelpaw, successfully sending her sprawling over the ground, spraying up an array of sand. Cinderpaw jumped up and planted herself beside Dawnpaw, the both of them approaching Hazelpaw slowly. The lone apprentice shook her head, sneezing before focusing on the task at hand.

Cinderpaw gave Dawnpaw a quick glance before she charged forward, thoroughly unbalancing Hazelpaw with a powerful swipe at her legs. Dawnpaw soared right over Cinderpaw, having been right on her tail, and leapt on her back, pinning Hazelpaw's shoulder to the ground and grabbing hold of her scruff, making sure not to break the skin of her neck.

"Very good!" Sorreltail exclaimed. Dawnpaw released Hazelpaw and sprang off, leaving her to shake the dust from her fur. Turning to the mentors, Dawnpaw saw that Brambleclaw and Squirrelflight were both giving her proud and impressed looks, warming her from nose to tail-tip. Sorreltail came forward to assess the loose ends of the practice.

"You two got off a little slow, but when the tables turned, Dawnpaw was right behind you during the whole attack. However, you took your time with the follow up. Hazelpaw was already dazed when Dawnpaw pushed her off of Cinderpaw, so she was an easy target then. Most certainly you will both be acting faster in a real fight when adrenaline is coursing through you," Sorreltail explained and Dawnpaw nodded, happy with the turn-out.

"Let's give Dawnpaw a break and Cinderpaw will attack Hazelpaw and Berrypaw," Dustpelt meowed. Hazelpaw twitched her ears and she padded over to join her brother and Cinderpaw assessed the two, leaving Dawnpaw to join the mentors.

Squirrelflight purred as Dawnpaw brushed against her side, giving her daughter's ear an affectionate lick. Dawnpaw basked in her mother's love, going back to when she was in the nursery and resting against Squirrelflight's warm belly beside her siblings. "You did well," Squirrelflight touched her nose to Dawnpaw's forehead.

"Thanks. I like working with Cinderpaw," Dawnpaw murmured, glancing over to where Cinderpaw was circling Hazelpaw and Berrypaw threateningly. "She reminds me of Birdpaw."

"How so?" Squirrelflight questioned, watching Cinderpaw unbalance Berrypaw and leap onto Hazelpaw's shoulders, bringing both of them down with a single move.

"Birdpaw can be as sweet as a two moon-old kit but still be dangerous in battle. There are two sides to both of them, and I think I like their kinder side better. I wouldn't want to meet either of them in a fight without reinforcements," Dawnpaw explained and she gestured to Cinderpaw with her tail, "See what I mean?"

Squirrelflight gave a grunt of agreement. "Yes, I most certainly do. The whole of ThunderClan should be delighted that we have Cinderpaw and Birdpaw training to be warriors. As well as the other apprentices. With so many, our chances of winning against WindClan tomorrow night are greatly increased."

Dawnpaw's ears pricked in interest at the mention of the confrontation that was soon to come. "Am I going?" She ceased to show it, but a flick of her tail betrayed her excitement.

Squirrelflight's whiskers twitched with amusement. "As far as I know, yes you are going, as well as Cinderpaw. Right, Brambleclaw?" She turned her head to her mate, who had one ear trained in their direction and his gaze toward Berrypaw as his apprentice tripped on Hazelpaw's tail.

Shaking his head in disappointment with his eyes closed, Brambleclaw turned his head to them. Opening his eyes again, he noticed that Squirrelflight and Dawnpaw were looking in his direction. "Sorry, I didn't hear what you said," he murmured. Raising his voice, he shouted, "Watch where you're putting your paws, Berrypaw!"

"I was wondering if I was going on the battle patrol tomorrow," Dawnpaw told him, a little too innocently.

Brambleclaw sent a glowering, accusatory look in Squirrelflight's direction, the dark ginger she-cat looking a little smug. He sighed. "Normally I would keep you from going, but considering who your mother is; I suspect you would follow the patrol anyway."

"Hey!" Squirrelflight protested indignantly. Dawnpaw purred in amusement as she watched her mother cuff Brambleclaw over the ear and scold him. She happily turned her attention back to the training session, silently daydreaming of her first battle.

**So! I'm not quite fond of this chapter, but it was almost a filler chapter anyway, just to explain some things between the first chapter and the next. Speaking of the next chapter, it will most likely contain the battle. I was debating on whether or not to have a death, but I changed my mind, seeing as Cloudtail is still healing.**

**I need suggestions for Brightheart's kits' names! I've got one picked out already, but I'm thinking of having two more kits. Reviews are always welcome, please include some kit names!**


	4. Chapter 3

The late newleaf warm air cooled steadily as the sun began to sink below the horizon, bringing almost every cat to the center of the ThunderClan camp clearing. Brambleclaw sat at the center of the bunch, issuing orders to those who were going to be participating in the confrontation of WindClan. Ashfur, Thornclaw, Stormfur, Hazelpaw, Dustpelt, Sandstorm, Honeypaw and I will be on the second wave of cats that will attack once the first wave starts the battle. Those on the first wave will be Squirrelflight, Cinderpaw, Birchfall, Redpaw, Sorreltail, Dawnpaw, Brook, Brackenfur, Spiderleg and Whitewing."

As Brambleclaw finished the long list of names of the cats who were to participate in the attack, Dawnpaw felt a shiver of elation ripple through her and her paws tingled, ready to race all the way to the WindClan camp and back. Honeypaw was sitting beside her and her tail flicked happily, but her gleaming eyes betrayed her excitement. Cats milled around, all talking about the upcoming battle, and Dawnpaw glanced around for her littermates. She found Birdpaw looking a bit let down along with Poppypaw as Hazelpaw and Cinderpaw both celebrated their being chosen together. Redpaw was gloating to Mousepaw and Berrypaw, both of the older toms looking slightly agitated. Then she spotted Bravepaw sitting alone at the edge of the clearing, a dejected expression on his face as he stared at his paws.

"I'll see you later," Dawnpaw murmured to Honeypaw and she left the tabby she-cat to her own devices, padding slowly across the clearing. Bravepaw didn't look up as she neared and Dawnpaw pressed against him. She gave his shoulder a little nudge. "What's got you looking like that, Bravepaw?"

Dawnpaw's brother sighed and he lifted his despondent gaze, looking up at her with such a heartrending expression in his eyes that had Dawnpaw's heart aching for him. He sighed again. "Of course I didn't get picked to go on one of the battle patrols. I'm useless to ThunderClan. I'm so small and I probably look like that I should still be in the nursery. I don't know why Stormfur tries so hard to train me when I'll never be able to be a real warrior."

The bitterness in Bravepaw's tone made Dawnpaw flinch, noticing the hint of malice in his mew that she did not understand. _Does he blame himself? _Recovering from the shock of his confession, she touched her nose comfortingly to his ear. "No, you are most certainly wrong about yourself," she murmured warmly. Bravepaw's gaze hardened, challenging her to provide reasons to contradict what he had told her. "I've seen you hunt, and the squirrels don't even see you coming! You're so agile that you could probably sneak up right behind them and pounce without them ever knowing you were there! Now about your size; you're perfect for climbing trees and squirming under bramble thickets—you're so light that you could jump from tree to tree and I doubt that even the brambles would have trouble being able to snag a clump of your fur!"

At her explanation, Bravepaw's eyes brightened and his tail straightened from its previously dull, drooping state. "Really?" he asked excitedly and Dawnpaw suppressed a _mrrow_ of laughter.

"Yes. Next time Berrypaw teases you about how big you are, tell him to try fitting his fat rump under a bramble thicket! Go on, spare him and Mousepaw from Redpaw's endless bragging," Dawnpaw's whiskers twitched in amusement as Bravepaw raced off, happy to have appeased his dark thoughts for himself at least for just one night.

As Bravepaw joined his brother and the two toms, Dawnpaw tore her gaze away and she lifted her face to sky, where Silverpelt was just starting to make its appearance, the stars beginning to brighten against the darkening background. Dawnpaw closed her eyes, reveling in the reminder that their warrior ancestors were watching over them.

A prickling of the fur on her spine alerted Dawnpaw to the pair of eyes that were staring at her from across the clearing. Her eyes snapped open and they narrowed immediately as she met Firestar's thoughtful gaze. His green eyes met hers, both the same exact shade of green reflected by the color of a fern bush during the warmer moons. The same color that Firestar passed down to one of his daughters, Squirrelflight, and she passed to Dawnpaw as well as Bravepaw.

Dawnpaw held his gaze for a few heartbeats before Firestar turned his head away, distracted by his mate, Sandstorm, as she supplied him a question. Still staring at her grandfather, Dawnpaw wondered what Firestar had been thinking about when he had been observing her. _He must have been watching me and Bravepaw, _Dawnpaw dismissed the curious previous happenings. _Firestar's so mysterious, though, nothing like Squirrelflight. _She blinked and looked away toward Squirrelflight and Brambleclaw, the two in a deep conversation with Dustpelt and Stormfur. Her father must have sensed her watching because his eyes flickered around the clearing until they met hers.

Providing an excuse, Brambleclaw slipped away from the three warriors and padded in her direction with Squirrelflight staring after him. Dawnpaw waited patiently for him to come to a stop beside her, and when he did she had absolutely no clue as to what to say, she wasn't even sure why he had joined her anyway.

Suddenly, Brambleclaw leaned down and rasped his tongue over her ear, pressing his nose to her forehead. "Remember everything that Sorreltail has taught you, Dawnpaw. Don't forget to watch your back, though I'm sure that Redpaw will be right on your tail."

Dawnpaw blinked, surprised as to why Brambleclaw was telling her all this. Then a rush of anger surged through her. "I know how to fight!" she replied indignantly. Brambleclaw only purred and his whiskers twitched.

"Listen to Brambleclaw, Dawnpaw." She tore her gaze from her father's face and looked at Squirrelflight, who she hadn't realized had padded up. "Your first battle can be pretty daunting," she meowed, giving Dawnpaw a collection of licks. Dawnpaw allowed her mother to groom her fur, not bothering to complain like her brothers always did. Soon she would have to fend for herself and she would be a warrior, when her mother would hardly, if ever, smooth down her fur for her and always look out for her wellbeing.

"What was your first battle?" Dawnpaw asked the two of them, deciding to be a young apprentice.

"The first major battle for was the one where BloodClan tried to take control of the forest, but I'm sure that Mousefur has already told you all of that, as well as leading the dog pack to the gorge in the old forest. I do remember, though, when the forest caught fire and Firestar—called Fireheart back then—had to rescue me from the burning camp. It wasn't exactly a battle but it was a challenge for both Firestar and me. Firestar was forced to save me as a kit over Yellowfang, the old medicine cat," Brambleclaw explained and Dawnpaw's eyes widened slightly. She had known that Firestar at first did not trust Brambleclaw when he was younger because of his heritage, but she hadn't known he still saved his as a kit over saving a Clan medicine cat.

"Hmm, all of those battles were before my time," Squirrelflight meowed, "But there was the whole Great Journey to be taken in account. On our way back from the sundrown-place we went through the mountains where we met some cats that lived by completely different ancestors than ours'. But what we didn't know at first is that a large cat called Sharptooth, looking like a lion, preyed on them. The Tribe thought that Stormfur was the silver cat to save them—I've no idea how they confused dark grey with silver. It turned out to be Feathertail, and she saved all of us. Without her sacrifice we probably wouldn't have made it out of the mountains alive, and you and your siblings would not have been born." Squirrelflight seemed pleased with her explanation and she deposited another affectionate lick on Dawnpaw's forehead.

"I hope this battle will live up to my expectations," Dawnpaw meowed, looking up at both of them. "I hope that we win the battle and WindClan will stop being such a pain in the tail." She added the last line for a bit of humor, but she meant it. She hoped that this battle will teach WindClan a lesson when it comes to walking over ThunderClan cats with the chins raised high to the sky, as if their arrogance couldn't get any larger.

"I do too, little one. However, let us all pray to StarClan that we come home safely," Squirrelflight meowed and Dawnpaw narrowed her eyes when her mother called her "little one." Then her gaze softened when her eyes met Squirrelflight's calm disposition. She leaned her head down to rub her chin over Dawnpaw's head. "Be careful, Dawnpaw."

"Of course," Dawnpaw whispered softly. "The Clan needs me. I wouldn't put my life in danger if there wasn't a good reason for it." She silently prayed to her ancestors that she wouldn't be wounded—or killed—during the skirmish.

Squirrelflight nodded, satisfied. She gave Brambleclaw a lasting glance before padding away. Dawnpaw lifted her head to stare up at her father. The worry in his eyes surprised her and it took Dawnpaw a heartbeat to realize that both of her parents were scared to death for her first battle—Dawnpaw's and Redpaw's first battle. Brambleclaw blinked and the emotion was gone, but his whiskers quivered in the nonexistent breeze. He rose to all four paws and then followed after Squirrelflight, but not before the tip of his tail caught Dawnpaw's ear.

"I don't know why they're so scared for you and your brother," Honeypaw's voice shook Dawnpaw from her thoughts. Her face had still been turned toward Squirrelflight's and Brambleclaw's escape route, and her head quickly snapped to the right, taking in the tabby she-cat sitting a few tail-lengths away. She must have been watching and listening to the whole thing. "I mean, Redpaw can take care of himself, and so can you. That's why they chose you two to be in the battle. Birdpaw is a little soft and I think Bravepaw needs to work on his confidence."

Dawnpaw knew that Honeypaw didn't mean to insult two of her siblings, but she sighed at her friend's carelessness anyway. Cinderpaw wasn't nearly as condescending as Honeypaw. However, before Dawnpaw had a chance to respond a yowl summoned every cat's attention. She looked away and trained her eyes on Firestar. He stood at the entrance tunnel of the camp. "Every cat in my patrol behind me!"

Giving a muttered "goodbye" to Honeypaw, Dawnpaw met up with Redpaw. He was twitching with excitement and anticipation, but Dawnpaw felt quite the opposite. She felt suddenly sick to her stomach, a pit that settled there and stayed there. She felt apprehensive and fearful, so much that she was nearly shivering with fright. Redpaw didn't notice.

"You'll be alright," a warm voice whispered in her ear and Dawnpaw jumped. She looked around her, but was surprised to find that no other cat was near enough so that she could feel their breath tickling the small hairs on her ear. Redpaw was too caught up with a conversation with Cinderpaw. Dawnpaw shook her head desperately, wondering if she had just imagined the voice in her ear. _I'm going crazy!_

With a yowl, Firestar dove into the bramble tunnel and the rest of the patrol raced after him, leaving Dawnpaw to take up the rear with Redpaw and Cinderpaw. She quickly gained on her denmates and pressed on ahead of them. Adrenaline coursed through Dawnpaw's veins and she enjoyed the soaring feeling she experienced as she ran. Sorreltail was right in front of her, her tortoiseshell tail streaming out behind her.

Dodging the low-hanging branches was easy and hopping over protruding tree roots proved to be just the same. She _was_ smaller than the other warriors and her brother, and couldn't help let a _mrrow_ of laughter escape her mouth when she heard Sorreltail swear when she didn't duck low enough to avoid a face full of leaves. Sorreltail glanced over her shoulder, glowering at Dawnpaw until her apprentice's amusement died away.

Dawnpaw was almost sad when Firestar slowed to a stop when the border with WindClan was right in front of them. She paused to catch her breath and looked ahead to the moors where the rabbit-chasers called their territory home. Dawnpaw couldn't help the shiver that went down her spine; she couldn't imagine not being under the safe refuge of foliage.

"When did you get so fast?" Cinderpaw stopped next to her, panting. She had only just caught up with Redpaw. Dawnpaw shrugged and she turned her attention to Firestar, looking over Sorreltail's shoulder. He was standing at the edge of the stream, staring out at the moorland. Dawnpaw wondered briefly why he was taking his time when she realized that he was looking for any WindClan patrols.

Obviously not spotting any, he flicked his tail and bunched his hind legs under him. With a soaring leap, he crossed the stream easily, landing lightly on the other side. One-by-one, every cat crossed and when it was Dawnpaw's turn she was staring wide-eyed at the water flowing to the lake downstream. She let out a shaky breath and tore her gaze away from the stream, instead focusing on her Clanmates on the other side. She bunched her legs beneath just as every cat had before her and tensed her muscles. With a push of her hind legs, she left the ground and flew through the air. Before she knew it, her paws touched soil once again and she breathed out a sigh of relief, moving out of the way so that her denmates would have room to cross.

Once every cat was over safely, Firestar led the cats over the open expanse of land. Dawnpaw felt very exposed without being under the safety of the forest canopy overhead and every other bush whichever way she turned. Flattening her ears to her skull, she narrowed her eyes against a blowing breeze, bringing with it the horrid stench of WindClan. _Good, they won't be able to smell us._

Gradually, the WindClan smell grew stronger and stronger, soon enough encasing the battle patrol with the scent of rabbits, the prime food source for their Clan. Soon, Dawnpaw was able to spot a cluster of boulders in the distance and she could tell that the soil gave way to a scoop in the landscape. There was a cluster of bushes and heather that encased it, but that was the only protection of the camp from what she could tell.

Firestar gave the signal to stop and the patrol halted. He turned to his warriors. "Brook, Cinderpaw, Sorreltail, Birchfall and Spiderleg will attack from the left on the opposite side. The rest of us will attack straight on. Before long, the second wave will be here. We only need to hang on until then." He spoke in a whisper.

Those instructed to leave the main group did so and they slinked off, circling around the camp. Firestar motioned for them to continue once again and the pit in Dawnpaw's stomach had grown to consume her with a foreboding sense of danger. The fur along her spine began to bristle and her claws slid out of hiding, sinking into the ground with every pawstep.

And then Firestar was yowling a fierce battle cry and she was thrown into battle. Cats streamed from their dens, weary voices rising in surprise. Dawnpaw threw herself at the nearest cat, a brown tabby, and she raked her claws down the cat's side, causing him to hiss in pain. Taking advantage of his momentary weakness, she slipped under his underside and she knocked his legs out from under him, sending him sprawling onto his back. Dawnpaw leapt swiftly onto his belly and dug her claws in, the cat howling as blood seeped out of the wounds and gathered under her paws. The cat started to shift under her and she jumped off of him before he could muster up the strength to flatten her to the ground.

Leaving the tom withering in pain, Dawnpaw searched the cats around her for her brother. She spotted his dark ginger form struggling under the weight of a larger cat a couple of fox-lengths away. Dawnpaw growled and she crossed the distance in two bounds, leaping onto the cat's back. She sunk her claws into his shoulders and hung on tightly, allowing Redpaw to slip from his grasp and claw at his muzzle. The tom hissed in agitation and he went into a roll, taking Dawnpaw down with him. She immediately released him and was left dazed on the ground, her vision fuzzy.

In the moments of her absence, Redpaw had managed to get in a few more good strikes, but the cat was just too big of an opponent for him. Dawnpaw shook her head and she jumped up onto her paws. "Rake his belly, Redpaw!" she instructed while trying again to leap onto his back and hold on tightly. She dug her claws into his flank and then gave his ear a good swipe before she was forced to jump off again. Redpaw must not have heard her, but he was free again. Dawnpaw escaped the tom's claws and she rolled to the side, straightening and latching the teeth to the base of the tom's tail.

He let out a screech of pain and he tried to turn and get her away, but that meant pulling his tail from her grasp, and that wasn't happening. Redpaw took notice of the distraction and he attacked the cat head-on, clawing at his eyes. By the sound of his wails, Dawnpaw knew that the fight was done. She released his tail and moved to Redpaw, pushing him away before he could inflict more harm than needed on the WindClan cat.

A yowl sounded from just outside the hollow and Dawnpaw knew that the second wave of ThunderClan cats had arrived. She swept her gaze around the clearing, finding a moment of rest in the midst of chaos. Redpaw had slipped back into the battle. She spotted Squirrelflight fighting back-to-back with Sorreltail against two warriors. Cinderpaw was being helped by Whitewing against a dark gray tom that Dawnpaw recognized as Crowfeather across the clearing.

Her attention to her nearer surroundings were incredibly too slack to realize that a cat had snuck up behind until it was too late. A pair of strong jaws sunk into her scruff and she was lifted off the ground. She let out a surprised yowl and the owner of the sharp teeth began to shake her violently. Dawnpaw's mind became too rattled to comprehend sight and all she saw was a blur before her eyes.

When the shaking came to a stop she thought that she was done before she felt herself being thrown across a short distance toward the nearest boulder. "Dawnpaw!" Several voices cried out her name before she hit the stone and fell to the ground with a sickening thud. Her eyes rolled back into her head and she was suddenly suspended in darkness as she lost consciousness.

**Sorry I didn't update sooner. I was in Philadelphia a week ago and I've found that having time to write has been limited, considering that I haven't been home except for a night for the past few days.**

**But, it's done. Instead of having any other cat get hurt, I decided that it had to be Dawnpaw, just to add a little bit of drama. You will all find out who did this to her in the next chapter. And don't worry; Dawnpaw is not hearing imaginary voices. It'll all come to play later in the story.**

**Please Review, I like to hear from my readers.**


	5. Chapter 4

**It's been awhile and I apologize for the wait, but I went to Florida for a week and found absolutely no time to write at all much. But now I'm finally done and I hope that it lives up to expectation. Some new OCs will be introduced in this chapter too.**

Multi-colored spots littered Dawnpaw's newly recovered vision and she was forced to blink several times before the dots faded gradually. Her mind was barely able to comprehend as a set of large, hooked claws lashed out at her. However, her reflexes were quick enough so that she evaded the attack, leaping backward into the heavy undergrowth, just out of reach of the terrifying claws.

She realized with a start that she was no longer in the WindClan camp where she had last heard the screeches of battle and the slight tangy scent of blood that hung heavily in the air. Now, Dawnpaw saw that she had been standing at the edge of a small clearing with hardly enough light from the darkened sky above to allow her to see the two cats that were there with her. Both of them had dark brown tabby pelts with identical broad shoulders. However, their eyes were different. Her attacker's were dark amber orbs that were eerily similar to Dawnpaw, but the other cat who was sitting several paces behind had eyes of an icy blue color that chilled her to the core.

"Who are you?" Dawnpaw meowed, finding her voice. She forced herself to make her mew sound firm and strong, though she felt completely the opposite. The fur along her spine down to the tip of her tail bristled instinctively and her claws slid into the ground beneath her. She would be ready for a fight if she needed to claw her way back home; despite the large size of her opponents, she was prepared to go out with a struggle.

The blue-eyed cat snorted. "Don't the elders ever tell you apprentices stories anymore? Haven't you learned about the ruthless Tigerstar that ruled TigerClan and brought four children into the Clans? Don't you recognize your father through him?" With that, the cat flicked his tail in the direction of the other tabby.

Dawnpaw's eyes narrowed at him. "My father is nothing like Tigerstar! He would never kill any cat for fulfilling his own ambitions. Nor would he leave his kits and mate to fend for themselves in another Clan while he went on destroying other cats' lives!" She sounded disgusted that any cat would do such a thing, and that was the only way to keep her voice from wavering slightly and she knew that these cats weren't going to let her just walk away from them.

"Enough." Dawnpaw's ears pricked at the familiar voice. The deep-voiced command pierced the tense air like claws scouring prey and the tabbies let out an agitated growl in unison as a large white and gray tom stepped from the thick undergrowth across the clearing, his blue eyes were alight and narrowed with fury. His long-haired pelt was full of translucent stars and he had a shimmering, light aura surrounding him, unlike the other two toms. His eyes flickered to Dawnpaw and they softened considerably. "You shouldn't be here, little one."

Dawnpaw bristled in anger. "I am not little!" she hissed indignantly but the tom ignored her, completely leaving the shelter of the brush and padding past the tabbies until he came to a stop beside her, his soft pelt brushing hers. Not meeting her blazing gaze, he glared at the other two cats, daring them to stop him. With a soft hiss, the amber-eyed tabby drew back and his companion moved to his side, allowing safe passage.

With an encouraging push of his nose, Dawnpaw was pressed forward and her legs moved quickly, eager to get away from these dark cats. The large tom padded right behind her, his heavy pawsteps echoing loudly in her ears. As the broad undergrowth engulfed them, Dawnpaw shivered once, glad to have escaped the strangers. She glanced back at her savoir and realized that he was still tense, eyes skirting the forest around them; they weren't in the clear just yet.

It was a ways until the tom relaxed—about the distance of half of ThunderClan territory, and that was when the air began to become light and carefree. "StarClan," the tom murmured to her, having seen her wondering expression on her face. "Back there was the Dark Forest—the Place of No Stars, rather. Tigerstar summoned you there in a moment of weakness for you."

Dawnpaw's eyes widened in horror as she heard his explanation. "StarClan? I'm not dead am I?"

The tom cast an amused glance her way. "No, little one, you are not dead. It isn't your time yet. You are merely resting, your body in Leafpool's den in the ThunderClan camp. Your family is awaiting your return."

"Then I have to go back now!" Dawnpaw begged, coming to an abrupt stop and looking up at him. "They shouldn't worry! And my Clan needs me! What's the point of staying here?" She moved to push past him, but her wrapped his tail around her flank, stopping her in her tracks. "Let me go!"

He gazed sadly at her. "I'm sorry, but your body must rest. You were hurt badly in battle, you have got to rest," he repeated, a hint of desperation evident in his voice. His eyes willed her to understand and Dawnpaw knew that she would have to do as she was told. This was a StarClan cat, how could she undermine his higher authority over her?

With a resigned sigh, Dawnpaw dropped into a sitting position and she stared at her paws, her head bowed in submission and her ears flat against her skull. "I'll stay," she murmured, then her eyes lit up and she lifted her head. "Though only if you show me some more of StarClan territory!"

Happy to have delayed her departing, the tom nodded to her. He turned away from her and continued on through the path between the birch trees. Dawnpaw trotted merrily beside him, winding around a few of the trees that stood in her way and some logs that across her path. The tom did not glance at her once until they reached the break in the trees. Lustrous light lit the large clearing with a bluish glow in front of them with a small, circular pond in the center, reflecting the shining stars above.

"This is where some cats come to see old loved ones in the Pond, and sometimes on full moons a few of the medicine cats are able to see into the future. StarClan knows about everything before any of the living warriors, unless StarClan chooses to share a prophecy with one of the Clans," he explained and Dawnpaw stared, amazed, as a lithe, unfamiliar black tom slid from the bushes on the other side of the clearing, padding to the Pool and gazing down into the shallow depths. As Dawnpaw looked closer, she could see the stars hanging from his slick pelt.

After several heartbeats, the tom raised his head and he turned his face to them and Dawnpaw blinked as his unsettling dark green gaze landed on her. Something about this tom unnerved her, and though she didn't understand it, she shrank away so that she was behind her companion rather than beside him. The black tom stared for only a moment longer before he returned to the forest, leaving stars in his wake.

"That was Nettlestar. He was ShadowClan's leader when I was a living warrior."

"Oh. I found him a little creepy," Dawnpaw admitted. Her eyes narrowed suddenly and she looked up at him, "Speaking of names, what is yours? You never introduced yourself formally to me."

"Cloudwhisker," he replied shortly, avoiding her penetrating stare. Dawnpaw let the subject drop, preferring not to push the issue since she had no right to intrude in his life. _Though_, Dawnpaw thought, countering her decision, _he must have cared enough to save me from Tigerstar and that other cat with him._

Dawnpaw shrugged off the thoughts and she blinked, looking back to the Pond. "When will I be able to go back home?" she questioned suddenly. The water in the Pond seemed to be calling to her through the voices of her friends and family. Moving out from behind Cloudwhisker, she stretched her neck and parted her jaws, discovering a sweet aroma to be hanging in the fresh night air.

The scent was fairly fresh and she knew that Cloudwhisker had detected it too as his gaze flickered around their forest surroundings. Dawnpaw's head swiveled around to stare into the undergrowth, searching for the faintest of movement. Drawn by the quiver of a fern bush, Dawnpaw turned her face in the direction of the activity, just in time to see a slender tortoiseshell and white she-cat maneuver from the bush into their view.

"You know that it is forbidden to go into Dark Forest territory, Cloudwhisker," the tortoiseshell murmured sternly, her voice quiet but loud enough for both Dawnpaw and Cloudwhisker to hear her. Her eyes, two dark blue orbs, transitioned from him to Dawnpaw and they grew from stern to icy dislike. Dawnpaw shivered.

"So? We have more power over those traitors and they find trouble in objecting to us. Tigerstar planned to use Dawnpaw as a pawn to get to Firestar for redemption. Now his plan has been ruined," Cloudwhisker argued and Dawnpaw blinked up at his face, surprised to hear the harsh tone of his stiff mew.

"Cats choose their own destiny, Cloudwhisker; you cannot choose for them," the she-cat retorted. Her tail flicked in the direction Dawnpaw. "Especially not her. You don't seem to understand that StarClan cats are never to interfere with the workings of what is to come."

"I shall do what I like, Frostblaze. You have no just reason for bothering me or order me around. Last time I checked, I was older and more experienced than you. Jealousy is not a fond trait in a she-cat, by the way," Cloudwhisker replied with a hiss, eyes narrowed. Dawnpaw was alarmed at his ferocity toward the she-cat and her ears fell flat against her head, her gaze regarding both Cloudwhisker and Frostblaze, watching for the she-cat's reaction.

"How can I be jealous of a cat who is nothing but a worthless apprentice. She couldn't even defend herself in battle," Frostblaze scoffed. She didn't even glance Dawnpaw's way in the slightest, but it was obvious as to which she was referring to.

Cloudwhisker's eyes flashed dangerously. "An apprentice against a Dark Forest cat is hardly fair. I suggest you shut your mouth before you say something you'll gravely regret," he growled, claws sliding into the ground beneath his paws threateningly. His belly sunk closer to the ground and he went into a crouch as if he were hunting a mouse or squirrel.

An unsettling feeling in her belly had Dawnpaw throwing herself between the two cats before Frostblaze could reply with another stinging comment that sent Cloudwhisker flying at her with claws outstretched. "Enough!" she insisted, looking from Cloudwhisker to Frostblaze. "Should you two really be fighting in StarClan?"

Cloudwhisker straightened out of his position and he shook out his thick pelt, sheathing his claws. He still glared at Frostblaze, but he seemed to have calmed down enough for the air to become less tense. Satisfied that Cloudwhisker had relented, Dawnpaw turned her eyes to Frostblaze. The she-cat was still in her sitting position and she still gazed coldly at her.

With a sigh, Cloudwhisker padded to Dawnpaw and he draped his tail easily over her shoulders. "Come, it's time for you to go home," he mewed into her ear. His breath warmed her fur and she nodded eagerly. They turned away from Frostblaze and he lead her away. Just before they were engulfed by the brush, Dawnpaw glanced back over her shoulder and she was surprised to see that Frostblaze was staring after them with a mournful display in her eyes.

Averting her gaze from the trees behind them, Dawnpaw looked back to Cloudwhisker, many questions bubbling in her throat. "Did you know Frostblaze when you were alive?"

Cloudwhisker's eyes remained fixated on the path ahead. "Yes. We in the same Clan and she was an apprentice while I was a young warrior. When I took another she-cat as my mate, she grew jealous and always did her best to prove that _she_ would prove to be a better mate than Sundapple. Sundapple and I never had kits together because she soon was killed in an attack from WindClan. Since then, Frostblaze has always been so eager to catch my attention but she grew bitterer every time I rejected her."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to pry," Dawnpaw meowed; horrified that she had almost forced him to reveal his past. He gave his head a shake, silencing her. After several heartbeats, she added, "I would like to meet Sundapple before I leave, though. Where is she?"

"It's too late, Dawnpaw. It's time for you to go home now. You've been here long enough," Cloudwhisker meowed, coming to a stop beside a large oak. He turned to her and as Dawnpaw opened her mouth to ask further, he interrupted her, "No more questions. Fall asleep here and you'll be back home in just a few moments."

Closing her jaw a snap, Dawnpaw followed his order and she stepped forward to the base of the oak looming over her. She circled over the ground numerous times before she collapsed on the soft grass with a sigh. Tucking in her legs close to her chest and belly, she curled her tail around herself and buried her nose into the thick fur of it. With one lasting glance on Cloudwhisker, Dawnpaw closed her eyes with the image of him still fresh in her thoughts. Just as fast as he had said, she was enveloped by darkness just heartbeats later.

* * *

><p>Dawnpaw's first conscious though after falling asleep in StarClan territory was that she must be in Leafpool's den. The scent of herbs washed over and she nearly sneezed at the horrible smells wafting lightly in the air. It was refreshing and reassuring of course, but they nearly cause her to sneeze. A scuffling noise issued from her surroundings—in front of her—and Dawnpaw figured that it must be Leafpool moving around her den and going through her herbs.<p>

Gradually, Dawnpaw forced her eyes open and she was forced to blink several times before her eyes were tuned to the dim amount of light in the medicine clearing, the lichen screening the entrance to the clearing shaded most of the inside from the sun's rays. By the bright outline of some of the lone lichen patches, Dawnpaw knew that it must be around sunhigh.

As Dawnpaw lifted her head from the mossy nest, the lichen trembled as a dark tabby form pushed into the clearing. It was Brambleclaw and his eyes widened when he spotted that she was awake. "Leafpool!" he called and the medicine cat came quickly from her den.

"You're awake!" she exclaimed after seeing Dawnpaw conscious. Brambleclaw hurried back out of the den and returned moments later with Squirrelflight on his tail. The dark ginger she-cat rushed to Dawnpaw's side and bent her head to wash her daughter's face with relieved strokes of her tongue, a purr rumbling joyously in her throat.

"I was so scared for you. You were almost killed!" Squirrelflight meowed, pulling away and giving Dawnpaw a stern look. "Don't you ever take on a warrior of that size on your own again, alright?"

"He came up behind me! I didn't take him on myself; I didn't even know that I was being targeted!" Dawnpaw protested, thinking it best not to mention her trip to StarClan, as well as her trip to the Dark Forest.

"You're lucky, Dawnpaw. Another claw-length down and the impact with the rock would have permanently damaged your spine forever. The cat that attacked you was very strong to have just thrown you like that," Leafpool informed her, cutting off Squirrelflight as she began to reply to Dawnpaw's insistence. "You received a concussion to your head. You might feel a little dizzy for a bit before it all heals up nicely. Battle training has been postponed, I'm afraid, until I clear you."

The light brown tabby she-cat looked sympathetic and all Dawnpaw could do is groan at the prospect. Brambleclaw's whiskers twitched and he leaned down to rub his muzzle along her cheek. "Only for a few days," he murmured and Dawnpaw reluctantly relented. "Thank StarClan that you're still here with us."

Dawnpaw thought back to her adventure in StarClan. She shivered at the remembrance of Tigerstar and his accomplice, but she was glad that it had been Cloudwhisker who saved her from them. He was kind and patient with her, and there was a nagging feeling to her that there was more to his past than he was letting on.

Squirrelflight sighed, pushing away the need to scold her daughter for worrying her so. She shifted closer to Dawnpaw so that their fur was touching—Dawnpaw's spine to Squirrelflight's flank. Then she lowered her muzzle close to Dawnpaw's ear. "You can sleep now. I will stay here with you until you wake again." With her words hanging in the air, Dawnpaw relaxed into the moss and blinked, realizing the tired sensation behind her eyes. She rested her head on her bedding, tucking her paws comfortably under her, and allowed her eyes to drift shut to the steady, rhythmic laps to her fur caused by her mother's tongue.

Then, just before Dawnpaw drifted away once again, she realized why Cloudwhisker's soothing voice had sounded so familiar; his was the same exact voice that had spoken to her before the battle had begun, comforting her fears so that she found the courage to face battle head-on. And she almost dismissed the thought before she figured that Cloudwhisker had probably been watching for some time before he decided to get involved; possibly knowing that she would end up being summoned to the infamous Dark Forest by Tigerstar. _Why though?_ This was her last waking thought before she, for the second time, fell under the veil of a deep, dreamless sleep.

**So the voice has been explained. Cloudwhisker has a complex past and his connection with Dawnpaw is deeper than the ThunderClan apprentice can even imagine. It may take a little while, but she will learn the truth and so will my readers at some point. Tigerstar's first target was Dawnpaw, and now he's going to try for her other siblings. I do still plan to use the Erins' idea of the Dark Forest rising, though I will be using different cats than before and there will be much drama surrounding the three who are destined to have powers not even StarClan has dreamed of. I still need to sort out some powers for the chosen cats, though.**


	6. Chapter 5

**Before you read, I must say that this chapter is long overdue. Throughout the course of the last few weeks I have been mostly occupied with school and soccer. I've almost no free time (even on the weekends) when I am constantly finishing assignments and projects. I have soccer four times a week and this is the first time that I've been able to write in two weeks. I apologize for the long wait and you will see that this chapter was almost rushed near the end. **

"Leafpool, please can I return to apprentice duties today?" The initial question asked by Dawnpaw was immediately shot down by the medicine cat with a quick refusal to allow her to leave the medicine clearing to train. "It's only been three days since you obtained your injury. You won't leave until I'm sure that you are completely and fully healed," Leafpool explained when Dawnpaw had complained.

Birdpaw, Redpaw and Bravepaw would come to see her almost every day unless they had to take part in assessments. Squirrelflight would bring her meals from the fresh-kill pile except for midday when she was busy with patrols. The only time when Leafpool allowed her to leave the confines of her den was when Firestar called a Clan meeting (which only took place once) and when Dawnpaw would retrieve a few mice when she would start to feel hungry.

However, seven days since the battle with WindClan, Dawnpaw brought up the question once again and Leafpool had conceded with barely a second thought. "If you start to feel the least bit dizzy, you need to come see me again," she warned with a stern glance when she had looked up from the squirrel she was currently devouring with haste.

Excited about the prospect about being able to rejoin her siblings in training, Dawnpaw had immediately gone to Sorreltail after leaving Leafpool's den, finding the tortoiseshell and white she-cat to be sharing tongues with Whitewing. "I've been cleared by Leafpool," she told her mentor, "When can we go back to training?"

Sorreltail looked up and blinked up at her apologetically. "I'm sorry, Dawnpaw, but we'll have to put off training until tomorrow. I promised Brackenfur that I would hunt with him. Brightheart has been complaining about the state of the bedding in the nursery for several days now, though. Why don't you go and ask if you can help?"

Dawnpaw's hopes plummeted, but she hid her disappointment and nodded to Sorreltail before turning away and padding slowly toward the nursery where Ferncloud and Robinkit were outside, the gray queen watching her kit chase after a colorful butterfly with clumsy paws. Dawnpaw flicked her tail in greeting before she ducked into the nursery entrance, ignoring the small tendrils of the brambles that brushed close to her flank, scraping lightly against her.

Brightheart was grooming herself inside and Daisy was napping in the corner. The white and ginger she-cat turned her head to Dawnpaw after giving her plump belly a last stroke of her tongue. "Hi Dawnpaw, are you feeling better?" Brightheart asked.

"I feel fine," Dawnpaw replied truthfully and she changed the subject, "Sorreltail wants me to clean out the old moss and lay down some new bedding."

"Oh good," Daisy purred, lifting her head off her paws and blinking open her eyes. She straightened to a sitting position and stretched with a wide yawn. "I'll help you to get some of the moss Leafpool keeps in her den. Brightheart, you can ask Ferncloud to bring the stale moss out of the den."

Brightheart huffed. "I can do that. I'm not as delicate as you think." Watching as she rose unsteadily, Dawnpaw had her doubts.

Daisy snorted but said nothing more on the matter. "Do what you want," she meowed before leading Dawnpaw out of the nursery. Dawnpaw followed the kit-less queen back to Leafpool's den, padding slowly a few tail-lengths behind her. Leafpool turned to her visitors as they entered her den.

"Back so soon, Dawnpaw?" the medicine cat prompted and Dawnpaw shrugged, not answering her. Daisy explained their purpose for coming and Leafpool gladly allowed them to collect the needed moss from the corner of her den where a trickle of water dripped constantly from the rock, forming a round pool of a reflective source of drinking water as well as a drainage for cleaning Leafpool's paws after she handled the sticky pulp of her herbs.

During Dawnpaw's stay, she had watched Leafpool prepare many concoctions for stomach aches, apply chewed marigold leaves to wounds caused by thorns from the forest, and even give Brightheart a poppy seed to help her sleep through her discomfort and restlessness at night. The work Leafpool had perfected amazed Dawnpaw, but her nose still wasn't used to the strong scent of the herbs that clung to the medicine cat's pelt and hung heavily in the air around her den.

Dawnpaw took her turn after Daisy to roll several patches of moss into a large spherical ball of the bedding and she lifted it off the ground into her jaws, careful not brush her tongue against the dry surface. With a nod to Daisy, they left the den, Dawnpaw giving Leafpool a farewell wave of her tail. Brightheart had followed Daisy's orders and she was lying outside the nursery while Ferncloud finished up with ridding the den of the old, stale bedding.

Seeing Dawnpaw near, Robinkit leaped to her paws after having been previously sitting outside the nursery entrance and she rushed to greet her. "Dawnpaw, can you show me some battle moves? Ferncloud won't let me ask Mousepaw again," the small brown and white kit mewed excitedly, casting a petulant glance toward her mother.

Dawnpaw set down her moss to answer the kit that she was busy and couldn't at the moment, but Brightheart beat her to it. Beckoning the kit with her tail, the she-cat told the kit, "Dawnpaw isn't unavailable right now, Robinkit. She has apprentice duties to attend to. Though, I can tell you the story of the Great Journey."

Robinkit gave a squeak of delight. "That's my _favorite_ story!" Without a single glance back at Dawnpaw she raced to the ginger and white queen, sitting down in front of her with wide blue eyes trained only on Brightheart. Dawnpaw sighed in reply, giving Brightheart a gracious flick of her tail.

Dawnpaw purred at the kit's enthusiasm and she grasped the moss once again, trailing after Daisy into the nursery. The cream she-cat was already clawing at her ball of moss, collecting an acceptable amount for a nest. Dawnpaw rested the moss ball at her paws and she copied Daisy, unsheathing her claws and separating a mound of moss from the rest. She flattened and molded the moss into a comfy nest for one of the queens.

"Dawnpaw, can you find another apprentice to fetch some feathers for the nests?" Daisy asked after creating her second nest. Dawnpaw looked at her name and she nodded, rising to a standing position. With a wave of her tail, Dawnpaw padded from the den, leaving the ball of moss behind in the den.

Trotting across the clearing to the apprentices den, Dawnpaw ducked her head inside. Almost all of the nests were empty except for Honeypaw, Mousepaw, and Berrypaw. "Dawnpaw!" Mousepaw greeted happily, craning his neck to see over Berrypaw's head, trying to get a good view of Dawnpaw. "Leafpool allowed you to leave her den?"

Dawnpaw nodded, but then sobered. "But I can't do any training until tomorrow. Sorreltail told me to help with renovating the nursery. Brightheart wanted to clean out the nests and construct new ones," she told them and then turned her head toward Honeypaw, the most willing of the apprentices to fetch feathers for the queens, she was sure. "Daisy told me that I should ask one of you to get some feathers from the forest so that the queens can weave them into their nests. What about you, Honeypaw?"

"Sure, I'd loved to!" Honeypaw nodded earnestly. She got to her paws and turned to the toms. "Coming Berrypaw? I'll need some help hauling all those feathers back to camp. Brightheart will need plenty to keep her kits comfortable when they're born."

With a sigh, Berrypaw followed her lead. "Fine, I'll come. Why don't you come too, Mousepaw?"

The gray and white tom gave his head a slight shake. "No thanks. But I think I will help Dawnpaw finish up with the nests." He looked up at Dawnpaw. "Is that okay?"

Dawnpaw, feeling uncomfortable under Mousepaw's questioning gaze, just nodded consent. "Great!" Honeypaw exclaimed excitedly. She beckoned to Berrypaw to follow her and she pushed by Dawnpaw, casting an amused glance her way before leaving the den. Dawnpaw stared after her, confused by the gleam in Honeypaw's eyes, and then she gave her head a slight shake, as if she were shaking water from her ears.

"Are you alright?" Mousepaw asked, having risen from his nest and padding toward her. He may have sounded casual but Dawnpaw could see his sudden concern for her wellbeing in his eyes. She stared at him for a heartbeat before replying with a short, "Fine."

She flicked her tail. "Come on, Daisy will be wondering where I am." Dawnpaw turned and she left the confines of the den with Mousepaw behind her. Nearing the nursery, Dawnpaw saw that Brightheart had finished her story and was resting now, leaving Robinkit to play with a tiny ball of used moss. With a swing of her tail, the moss was tossed into the air, landing in front of the apprentices. Robinkit immediately dropped into a crouch as Dawnpaw gave the moss ball a blow with her paw. The ball rolled by Robinkit and she raced after it, turning with a single leap and tumbling toward it on delicate legs.

Retreating to the nursery before Robinkit insisted to play with the moss ball, Dawnpaw hurried inside. She would have loved to play with the kit if she wasn't doing apprentice duties. Mousepaw pushed inside the nursery a moment later, coming to a rest beside her, a purr rumbling in his throat.

"It's about time you came back!" Daisy exclaimed, looking up from finishing her last nest. "I thought that you had left me to do the rest of this."

"Of course not. Honeypaw and Berrypaw are searching for some feathers by the lake," Dawnpaw told her, moving to settle beside her ball of moss. She took a pawful and then another, gradually flattening the patches until she had half a nest. Mousepaw started on another nest, keeping conversation with his mother. Dawnpaw tuned them out, not wanting to hear about her denmate's training while she wasn't able to. After a few more swipes at the diminishing moss ball, the nest was finally finished. She left the rest of the moss to Mousepaw's possession. Without warning her belly gave a slight rumble.

"Are you hungry, Daisy? I can fetch a sparrow for you," Dawnpaw asked the cream she-cat. Sorreltail would be mortified if she found out that Dawnpaw had eaten before bringing the queens a meal.

"Thank you, Dawnpaw, but I can do without anything to eat. I had a mouse before you came. However, Brightheart and Ferncloud didn't have anything to eat recently. I don't think that they would mind if you brought them something from the fresh-kill pile," Daisy meowed, craning her neck to see around Mousepaw.

"Okay," Dawnpaw replied before leaving the two cats on their own for the time being. Ferncloud had joined Brightheart and the two she-cats where drowsily sharing tongues, Robinkit resting against her mother's flank. Dawnpaw trotted across the clearing and leaned over the pile of fresh-kill. She nosed through the choices until she came across a plump squirrel. Grasping the squirrel by its tail, Dawnpaw retreated back to the nursery.

"Thanks, Dawnpaw," Ferncloud meowed as Dawnpaw deposited the squirrel in front of the queens. Robinkit lifted her head off of her paws and pricked her ears in interest.

Dawnpaw nodded and looked up as movement flashed in her peripheral vision. Honeypaw and Berrypaw had returned and were bounding across the clearing, mouths stuffed with feathers. Dawnpaw beckoned to them with her tail before she pushed into the nursery. "Berrypaw and Honeypaw are back."

The two apprentices dumped the pile of feathers inside the nursery and disappeared quickly after that, obviously not interested in helping their denmates. Daisy rolled her eyes after the two had left. "Go ahead and follow them. I'll finish up with the feathers."

"Thank you, Daisy." After Dawnpaw had expressed her gratitude to the cream she-cat, she happily left the nursery with Mousepaw on her tail. After a quick sweep of the clearing she saw that Honeypaw and Berrypaw had retired to outside the apprentices' den and were sharing a vole.

Dawnpaw quickly chose a starling from the fresh-kill pile and joined them along with Mousepaw. Settling down to take a bite from her meal, she pricked her ears to catch up with Honeypaw's and Berrypaw's conversation. To her immense surprise, the two were talking about Brightheart's unborn kits, bartering on what they will look like and their names. Glancing in Mousepaw's direction, she saw that he was shocked too. Berrypaw had never expressed any type of interest for kits or queens in the past. However, Dawnpaw soon came to the conclusion after her realization that it might not be the subject of the conversation that had attracted his fascination.

"Dawnpaw, you're back!" Dawnpaw turned her head toward her sister's voice and saw that Birdpaw had returned from her hunting patrol with Redpaw, Hazelpaw and their mentors. Twitching her ears to show that she had heard, Dawnpaw finished off the last of the starling.

"So Leafpool finally let you leave her den?" Hazelpaw meowed, pacing excited circles around Redpaw. "Well, our mentors were pleased with our hunting today. The forest was loaded with prey!"

Dawnpaw gave a half-hearted grunt of congratulation. She rested her chin on her paws in front of her. Her mood had decreased with the arrival of more of her denmates. She resented her injury from the battle, and she hated the cat that had attacked her; no one had told her who it had been. Then, Dawnpaw reconsidered after a moment of thought, she wouldn't have met Cloudwhisker or the few other cats of StarClan she had seen. However spiteful Frostblaze had been, obviously she wasn't that bad of a cat since she had not ended up in the Dark Forest.

She hadn't reflected on her trip to the hunting grounds of her warrior ancestors for days. Now that Dawnpaw thought about it she found it peculiar that it had been Cloudwhisker to save her from the Dark Forest. Why had it not been another cat from known Clan history, such as Spottedleaf or Lionheart? From Mousefur's and Longtail's stories those two sounded the most likely candidates, but instead she had gotten a savoir that had lived seasons before Firestar's existence had even been thought of.

And the significance of the other cats from his time? It seemed as if all of the dead cats she knew of had vanished from that forest, leaving Dawnpaw with cats that she couldn't even detect a Clan scent from. However, she felt almost special for being useful enough to at least be saved from Tigerstar and Hawkfrost.

"Dawnpaw are you alright? You've been awfully quiet." Dawnpaw glanced in the direction of the voice and met Honeypaw's concerned gaze. Now that every other of the apprentices were watching her Dawnpaw's fur grew hot and prickled with embarrassment.

"I'm fine. I was just thinking about being able to hunt again," Dawnpaw mewed, the lie rolling off her tongue easily. Of course, she really wasn't, but her excuse satisfied Honeypaw enough for her to go back to talking about the upcoming Gathering. However, before Honeypaw could allow her voice to leave her the bramble camp entrance tunnel quivered and out stepped Cinderpaw with Cloudtail on her tail.

But that was not what had caught Dawnpaw's attention. A tiny, gray and white kit hung from Cloudtail's mouth, resting against the white warrior's upper chest.

**Yeah, a cliffhanger. When I read other fanfictions I loathe them, but they are so useful in my own writing! Anyway, I realize that this chapter wasn't particularly exciting, but not every chapter will be either. This chapter was mainly for a little character development for a few of the apprentices and I added some HoneyXBerry in there, too. So, I hope that this chapter didn't scare off all my readers, because at the moment I am planning to create a much better chapter six.**

**R&R please!**


	7. Chapter 6

**Here's chapter 6! Enjoy and R&R!**

The assault began with Ferncloud standing up from where she had been laying, ears pricked and eyes trained on the bundle grasped in Cloudtail's jaws. Robinkit had been jostled by her mother's movements and she followed Ferncloud's gaze, curious to know why she had been awakened. Spotting the kit, her eyes widened and she hopped to her paws, bounding across the clearing, excited to see the tiny newcomer.

Sandstorm had leapt down from the ledge where she and Firestar had been lying together in the sun, looking over the clearing. The she-cat approached Cloudtail warily, her tail slightly bristled, but as she neared her tail smoothed out with ease. Cloudtail leaned down and plopped the kit onto the ground and Sandstorm sniffed it, her tail twitching.

"Cloudtail's found a kit!" Mousepaw muttered aloud, gazing over the top of Redpaw's head.

"Actually," Cinderpaw countered, her eyes shining with excitement, "I found him. He was all alone near the WindClan border, poor thing. There wasn't any sign of its mother around, not even a faint scent, so Cloudtail decided that we should bring it back to camp. Isn't it amazing!"

Dawnpaw's gaze flickered to Cinderpaw for a moment, but then it returned to the kit. She was mesmerized. The kit reminded her so much of Cloudwhisker; the pattern of white and gray splotches was nearly identical to the image of the tom that she remembered from her dream. Even the slight long length of his fur was reminiscent. _It can't be though, _Dawnpaw thought. _I saw him only just several nights and days ago. This kit looks to be a quarter-moon old!_

"Cloudtail! Where in StarClan's name did you find a kit?" Firestar followed slowly in Sandstorm's wake. His ears were pricked and he studied the kit at Cloudtail's paws. As Cloudtail told his Clan leader the whole story, Ferncloud had wandered closer. She shooed Robinkit back to the nursery and hunched protectively over the kit, lapping gently at his fluffy pelt.

Brambleclaw joined Firestar in conversation and the two quietly spoke away from the Clan entrance. It wasn't long of a wait until the two broke apart and Firestar gave Ferncloud a nod. The gray flecked queen lifted the kit from the sandy ground of the clearing and she padded back to the nursery where Daisy and Brightheart followed her into the den with Robinkit on their tails.

Dawnpaw got to her paws and, ignoring the voices of her denmates asking her where she was going, she paced herself across the clearing and she ducked into the nursery once again. Inside, Ferncloud was allowing the kit to suckle from her belly as the other queens and Robinkit looked on, the brown she-kit nestled beside the small tom, the size difference being astounding.

"Dawnpaw?" Daisy looked up at her, surprised at her appearance. "I wasn't expecting you to come and visit the new arrival anytime soon."

"I was curious. Cinderpaw told me that she had found him near the WindClan border," Dawnpaw meowed. She leaned closer to Ferncloud's nest and took a closer look at the kit. Its fur was incredibly fluffy, but that was to be expected from a young kit. The gray coloring atop the white base of his fur was arranged in a similar pattern to Cloudwhisker's pelt, but there were slight differences in the formation of the patches. Dawnpaw sighed quietly in relief. She looked up at Ferncloud. "What will his name be?"

The gray-flecked queen looked surprised at her question and she took turns looking to the other queens. "I hadn't thought about that, actually. What do you think, Daisy?"

Daisy thought for a moment, staring intently at the kit. "What about Snowkit?" Brightheart cut in before Daisy answered. "His patched fur reminds me on Sunningrocks when it would snow, and his pelt is so soft."

Ferncloud purred while Daisy nodded assent. "I like that name," Ferncloud meowed. She brushed the tip of her tail along the spine of the kit. Dawnpaw curled her tail up in amusement as Snowkit squeaked and he stopped feeding, curling into a tight ball close to Ferncloud's belly. Robinkit laid herself out beside him, looking over Snowkit with a proud gaze.

"I'll tell the apprentices," Dawnpaw meowed and exited the den, leaving the comforting surroundings behind. She trotted across the clearing and her denmates looked up at her expectantly as she neared.

"Did you see him?" Honeypaw asked with a gleam in her eyes. "What did the queens name him?"

"His name is Snowkit," Dawnpaw told them and as Honeypaw turned to Hazelpaw with a delighted gleam in her eyes, Redpaw approached Dawnpaw. His dark red fur shone a fiery color in the sunlight the muscle on his shoulders rippled as moved. For the first time, Dawnpaw saw just how much he looked like Brambleclaw, besides the fur color, their build was the same, eye color, and even the menacing hooked claws had been passed down to him. Dawnpaw shivered involuntarily. _I sure feel bad for any cat that will meet him in battle, _Dawnpaw thought, taking in his large size. He looked to be almost a young warrior rather than an apprentice halfway into their apprenticeship.

When Redpaw gave her shoulder a slight push with his nose in the direction of the nursery, Dawnpaw narrowed her eyes, gazing quizzically at him, wondering what her brother was up to. With an exasperated sigh, Redpaw meowed, "Just come on. I need to talk with you. I'd rather not have the other apprentices overhear us. I found a place where we can talk without any disruption, it's behind the nursery."

Dawnpaw, curious as to what he wanted to tell her, followed Redpaw across the clearing and they slid around the side of the nursery, coming to a small clear area secluded to the rest of the camp. Even the queens would not be able to hear them through the thick bramble walls.

Once they were settled, Dawnpaw asked, "What did you want to talk about?"

Redpaw hesitated, but he meowed, "You were approached by Tigerstar, am I right?"

Dawnpaw blinked, her jaw dropped open in surprise before she was able to recover from the initial shock of Redpaw's question. Unsure of whether or not to answer truthfully, it took Dawnpaw a few heartbeats to settle on a reasonable reply to his query. "Yes, he did, why would you ask that?"

Redpaw's amber eyes darkened. "He visited me last night."

"Oh," Dawnpaw breathed. She was quiet for a moment before her eyes widened. "Do you think that he'll go to Bravepaw and Birdpaw in their dreams? Should we tell them not to stay with Tigerstar?"

Redpaw flicked his tail. "I don't know, but I'm sure that StarClan wouldn't let them be with Tigerstar. Spottedleaf stopped me before I could agree to it."

The spark of suspicion toward Cloudwhisker's character was beginning to ignite and Dawnpaw wondered why Redpaw had been saved by a known StarClan member, but she got stuck with a cat she had never heard of. Dawnpaw just nodded in agreement to Redpaw's statement, preferring not to share her visit with her brother, a retelling that would surely arise questions that Dawnpaw either didn't know the answer to or questions that she had been wondering herself.

"Shouldn't we tell Brambleclaw or Firestar?" Redpaw asked. "After all, we all know that Tigerstar was never a friend of ThunderClan."

Dawnpaw shook her head, following his line of reasoning. "What would they be able to do about it? It isn't as if they can stop Tigerstar from visiting all of us."

"They could make sure that no ThunderClan cat could accept his offer!" Redpaw exclaimed, sounding frustrated.

Dawnpaw sighed in defeat. Her brother was just as stubborn as she was at times, but at least she could admit defeat. Though, one of the reasons she did not want to share her experience in the Dark Forest with her father or Firestar was because they might ask about the cat who had deterred her from the path of darkness. At the moment, she wanted to keep her memories of Cloudwhisker a secret for the same reason she refused to tell Redpaw of him.

"Fine," she told him, "You can tell him. Just have Firestar call on me if he needs me to testify."

Dawnpaw began to move past him and back into the clearing but Redpaw barred her way with his tail. She turned her head back to him and found that he was staring at her with a concerned gaze. "You didn't accept Tigerstar's offer, right? Some StarClan cat got you out of there before you could, am I right?"

"Of course," Dawnpaw replied, slightly surprised by his questions. Then she felt a little hurt. _Did he actually believe that I would betray my Clan like that? That I would join that cold-blooded cat with ease?_

The full moon rode high in the sky and shadows were cast behind the ThunderClan cats traveled together to the tree bridge providing a passageway onto the island where the Gatherings occurred every full moon. Dawnpaw padded at the center, surrounded by her Clanmates. Birdpaw and Bravepaw were at her side and Dawnpaw could see Redpaw trudging beside Leafpool and Squirrelflight.

Redpaw had told Firestar about the problem with Tigerstar, but the Clan leader had ultimately dismissed it, providing a shock to every memory that Dawnpaw had reserved of her kin. Despite Redpaw's reveal, Firestar had allowed him to come to the Gathering. Craning her neck, Dawnpaw could see Firestar padding at the head of the Clan with proud stature.

"What do you think WindClan will say about the battle?" Birdpaw asked Dawnpaw.

"It was a provoked attack," Spiderleg growled from behind them. Dawnpaw glanced back at the tom, unsure that that excuse would be suitable for Onestar. The WindClan leader had been adamant to be enemies with ThunderClan for as long as she could remember being a kit in the nursery and the queens and warriors talking about it.

Soon they came to the tree bridge after rounding around the lake shore. The log was devoid of any other Clan so Firestar hurriedly leaped onto the trunk and he slinked over the dark water. Dawnpaw opened her mouth and drew in the scents around her. The aroma of her Clanmates was the most powerful, but as a breeze swept over the cats she could distinguish the strong odor of ShadowClan on the island.

One by one, the cats crept over to the other side of the tree bridge where the other half of ThunderClan waited patiently. Brackenfur leaped onto the trunk in front of Dawnpaw and after he had gone a considerable distance, she followed suit. She sunk her claws into the tough bark and she gradually made her way to the other shore, avoiding the small limbs that stuck up around the tree. With a sigh of relief that everything had gone smoothly, Dawnpaw jumped down onto the pebbly bank of the island, where she joined Redpaw as she waited for Bravepaw and Birdpaw to join them.

When every cat had crossed, Firestar led them to the edge of the trees and bracken that surrounded the clearing beyond. For a few heartbeats everything was still, but then Firestar flicked his tail and the ThunderClan cats surged forward and descending down the slight incline. Dawnpaw raced on with her fur brushing her brothers' and the clearing opened up before them.

This was her second Gathering and she was nonplussed by the size of ShadowClan. There were few cats and Blackstar was gazing with contempt at the flood of ThunderClan cats. Dawnpaw slowed to a trot and she headed for the knot of ShadowClan apprentices milling about away from the warriors. She spotted Ivypaw and Owlpaw among the other apprentices, two cats she had met at her first Gathering.

Flicking her tail, Dawnpaw padded across the clearing with Birdpaw while their brothers went off to mingle with a few warriors. "Hi," Ivypaw greeted with a twitch of ears. Dawnpaw waved her tail and she turned to Owlpaw.

"How's the prey running?" she asked with friendly intentions. Owlpaw didn't answer but he just glared continuously at her and Birdpaw, his eyes narrowed to slits.

His behavior prompted Ivypaw to roll her eyes. "I'm sorry he's being so grumpy tonight. His mentor had him cleaning out the elders' den all day today."

Owlpaw growled a warning and he stalked away from them with the tip of his tail twitching in agitation. Dawnpaw stared after him for a heartbeat before she turned to the other apprentices who were strangers to her. Birdpaw was talking with a gray tabby tom and Dawnpaw pricked her ears to listen, hearing about a pine tree that had fallen into their camp, narrowly missing one of their warriors.

"That's Sootpaw," Ivypaw told her, and then she blinked when she caught hold of their conversation. "And he's being awfully kind to share _that_ story…"

The tortoiseshell she-cat stalked over to her Clanmate and broke up their conversation featuring a recent fight between two ShadowClan warriors. Dawnpaw's whiskers twitched in amusement and silently prayed to StarClan that none of _her_ denmates shared too much information to the ShadowClan cats.

A yowl startled Dawnpaw and she jumped as WindClan entered the clearing, streaming through the tree trunks with Onestar at the lead. With a quick survey of the clearing, Dawnpaw noticed that most of the ThunderClan cats sidled away from them with vengeful glares cast in the direction of the moor cats. Having never found out which cat had attacked her, Dawnpaw studied the WindClan cats. Some of them were large in size, but none of them seemed to be the right cat. _He or she must have stayed at their camp,_ Dawnpaw reasoned.

Averting her gaze from the WindClan cats, Dawnpaw turned back to the other apprentices to find that her other denmates had joined them and Ivypaw was holding a jumping contest with Berrypaw and Poppypaw. Padding closer to them, Dawnpaw watched as Berrypaw leaped into the air. He cleared the ground at nearly four tail-lengths but he nearly tumbled on the landing, tottering as his paws met the ground.

Poppypaw reared higher than him and landed gracefully, flicking his tail over Berrypaw's ears and receiving a dark look from him. Ivypaw snorted and she pressed her belly against the ground. Her hindquarters wiggled and she sprung off the grass, mastering an impressive feat. When she had landed effortlessly, she raised her chin, declaring herself the winner.

"That was amazing, Ivypaw!" Birdpaw praised the ShadowClan she-cat with enthusiasm. Ivypaw dipped her head in thanks, eyes gleaming with triumph.

"I can jump the highest in my Clan, but I'm sure that most WindClan cats can jump higher than me, with their long legs," she meowed, her tail flicking agitatedly. "Those rabbit-chasers act as if they own the whole lake," she added, her gaze trained on the WindClan cats that stayed within their own Clan, warily watching the ThunderClan and ShadowClan cats milling about.

Before any of the other apprentices could say more, a yowl echoed throughout the clearing as Leopardstar led her Clan from the trees. The spotted she-cat leaped into the tree with the other leaders, settling on a branch below Firestar. She glanced to the other leaders and gave a slight nod.

"Let the Gathering begin!" Firestar silenced the other cats and the ThunderClan apprentices bade farewell to the young ShadowClan cats. Dawnpaw weaved through her Clanmates and she came to a stop between Sandstorm and Brackenfur so that she was surrounded by her Clanmates.

"Cats of the Clans," Firestar began and Dawnpaw looked up at him, "ThunderClan has been thriving throughout newleaf and this past moon was no different. The prey has been running and we are well-fed. Any threat to our borders will be treated with hostility." His last words caused a slight shift in the atmosphere and Dawnpaw shivered as she glanced at the WindClan leader, seeing his cold gaze sweeping over the crowd of ThunderClan cats.

As Firestar retreated into the shadows, Blackstar shifted forward on his branch. "ShadowClan has been well this past moon and we welcome Sootpaw here at his first Gathering." There was a brief murmur of congratulation for the new apprentice and Dawnpaw remembered the tom that had been talking with Birdpaw. "We have also been blessed as Dappleshade has given birth to a litter of two healthy kits."

The tension had been momentarily forgotten at Blackstar's announcement of the new litter, but it quickly returned when Onestar took his place in the moonlight, eyes gleaming. "Warmer weather is coming and hostility is expected, though some of us seem a little…eager to cause friction."

The ThunderClan cats shifted and Dawnpaw's eyes narrowed, her claws unsheathing and sinking into the ground below. Anger bubbled inside of her, but no matter how strong her desire to reply to his antagonism, she swallowed her spiteful words.

Firestar ignored the jab, his mutual gaze unchanging. Onestar, his lip curling at the beginning of a snarl, turned his head to the fiery-colored leader. "WindClan is ready for a fight and we have recovered from before. You will not find us on the surprise the next time."

"Keep your warriors on your side of the border and I shall keep mine in ours," Firestar replied without a hint of malice. Dawnpaw wondered briefly how he could be so calm in a moment as such, especially with Onestar being so deliberately hateful.

Onestar growled, followed by most of the WindClan warriors, but he said nothing more. He slipped from the light and allowed Leopardstar to begin her announcements. "The river is full of fish," she meowed, "We are well-fed and are content for the time being. Meanwhile, Rippletail has been given his warrior name and is here for his first Gathering as a warrior!"

There was barely any praise for the newest RiverClan warrior and Dawnpaw felt a stab of sympathy for the tom, praying to StarClan that her warrior announcement would not be as shadowed with tension as Rippletail's.

"Is that all, Leopardstar?" Firestar asked and the spotted leader nodded assent. Leaping from his branch, he flicked his tail over his back, signaling for the ThunderClan cats to follow him. Dawnpaw fell in step beside Bravepaw, merging into the crowd.

The crossing over the tree bridge was quick and the ThunderClan cats swiftly retreated back to their designated territory before the WindClan cats could ever catch up with them. Dawnpaw relaxed as they trudged into the forest, her surroundings once again being familiar.

By the time they had reentered the camp the moon was descending in the sky and tiredness dragged at her paws, but she was surprised to find that Daisy was pacing outside the nursery, looking anxious. As the cream she-cat looked up at the return of the rest of the ThunderClan cats, she exclaimed hurriedly, "Leafpool! Brightheart is kitting!"

**I'M SO SORRY! Don't kill me for giving you another cliffhanger! I felt that the chapter would be too long if I carried on, and I needed something interesting to keep you all interested!**

**Anyway, I need some suggestions as to which names I should use for Brightheart's kits: Lilykit, Hailkit, or Tansykit? (I plan on having three kits for Brightheart, but I've already decided on Cloverkit.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7 is here! I wrote most of this throughout today, seeing as I had nothing else better to do, and like always I didn't proofread over it, so if there are any mistakes that you find, please notify me by way of a review, please. Thanks!**

**Anyways, enjoy! R&R please!**

Dawnpaw flicked her ears agitatedly, glancing at Cloudtail as a pain filled yowl reverberated around the clearing. The white tom was pacing just outside the nursery, anxiously waiting for Leafpool to emerge from the den and announce the birth of Brightheart's kits. Every time there was a cry from inside the nursery he would sink his claws into the ground and lash his tail. He was making every other cat nervous with his movements.

"I hope Brightheart will be alright," Hazelpaw fretted and Dawnpaw glanced over her shoulder at her. Some of the other apprentices had retired to their den, but the remaining of them was still sitting in the clearing, just like the rest of the Clan.

"She'll be fine." Cinderpaw dismissed her denmate's worries. "Brightheart is a strong she-cat. It wouldn't be her first litter anyway."

"But what if something goes wrong?" Hazelpaw ignored Cinderpaw's reasoning, her eyes wide. "Remember the stories Longtail has told about Silverstream? What if that happens to Brightheart, too?"

Dawnpaw resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Calm down, Hazelpaw. Like Cinderpaw said, Brightheart will be perfectly fine," she meowed, and continued with whole certainty, "Leafpool will see to that."

Hazelpaw spoke no more, but Dawnpaw knew that she was not satisfied, not until she would be given proof of the fact that Brightheart was indeed safe. Dawnpaw looked away from them her gaze wandered to where Daisy was sitting near the medicine cat's den, Robinkit and Snowkit at her paws. Robinkit was much larger than the white and gray kit, but Snowkit was only a quarter-moon old, he had yet to grow and would certainly be larger than Robinkit by the time he reached warrior status.

"It's his first time outside the nursery." Dawnpaw jumped at the sound of mother's voice. She snapped her head around and spotted Squirrelflight laying close to the camp wall a few tail-lengths away. She must have seen Dawnpaw watching the two kits.

Slowly, Dawnpaw padded to Squirrelflight and sat beside her. Her mother's green eyes were bright as she stared at the two kits across the clearing. "New kits are always a sign of prosperity for ThunderClan. Brightheart's kits will surely bring happiness for all of us, a blessing from StarClan themselves," she murmured softly. After several heartbeats of silence between the two, Squirrelflight lifted her chin to gaze up at her. "Ferncloud told me about your visit to the nursery earlier today. Interested in kits, are we?"

Dawnpaw's jaw plummeted and she desperately searched for an explanation before their conversation turned to a more embarrassing topic. She contemplated telling Squirrelflight of her dream shared with Cloudwhisker, but she immediately rejected the idea, preferring to keep those details to herself. "Oh, um…" she glanced over her shoulder, "I think I hear Cinderpaw calling me."

Squirrelflight let out a _mrrow_ of laughter as Dawnpaw began to turn away from her. "Oh come on. Tell me, who's the lucky tom who has caught your eye?"

_It's not like that!_ Dawnpaw protested inwardly, but Squirrelflight wouldn't understand her meaning and that would lead to more questions. She scuffled her paws, staring down at them. _ It's too late to get away,_ she cursed too herself. "No one, Squirrelflight," she mewed, hoping that Squirrelflight would be satisfied with her answer.

_Of course she isn't!_ Squirrelflight hauled herself off of the ground and shifted closer to Dawnpaw. "Don't be like that; there isn't a reason for you to be shy about it," she paused for a moment before venturing further, "Is it Mousepaw?"

Dawnpaw's eyes widened and she leaned away from her mother. "No! Of course it isn't!"

Squirrelflight tilted her head to side. "Too bad," she meowed, "I know that he's fond of you. Ever since you left the nursery with your siblings."

By now, the tips of Dawnpaw's ears were hot with embarrassment and she stumbled over her words. "I-I've got to go, talk to you later." She left Squirrelflight standing there, staring after her with an amused gaze.

Her denmates were right where she had left them so Dawnpaw settled back into her spot and she was just in time to see the entrance to the nursery quiver as Leafpool left the den. Dawnpaw pricked her ears as Cloudtail pushed into the den and Leafpool nodded to Daisy. The cream she-cat lifted Snowkit off the ground and retreated back into the nursery with Robinkit at her tail.

The Clan had become silent by now and every cat held their breath for the news. There had been no indication from the medicine cat whether the kits were healthy or if they had perished. Dawnpaw stared at the nursery until Cloudtail pushed his head outside. "Three healthy kits!"

There was a thunder of congratulations and meows full of excitement for Cloudtail, Brightheart, and their new kits. Dawnpaw heard a sigh of relief from Hazelpaw. Rather than joining her ecstatic Clanmates, Dawnpaw lifted her face to the sky where Silverpelt gleamed brightly. _Thank you, StarClan, for the birth of a new healthy litter._

The stars were silent in reply, but Dawnpaw thought that they shone brighter than they had before during the Gathering.

* * *

><p><em>Screeches of battle echoed in her ears and Dawnpaw gasped as she gazed down at the wriggling mass of cats as they vainly fought one another. She was standing atop the Highledge and her vantage point was much better than if she were down there herself. Panic rushed caused her heart to race erratically and she frantically searched the crowd.<em>

There,_ she spotted Redpaw's scarlet pelt moving swiftly through the cat. To Dawnpaw's surprise, though, he was larger than she had remembered and his muscles rippled underneath his smooth pelt as he picked his way around a squabbling pair. Dawnpaw could not see his destination but he was determined, his amber eyes flashing._

_Dawnpaw shifted her gaze as a flash of brown exploded in her peripheral view and she barely had time to leap out of harm's way as Onestar landed with unsheathed claws where she had been sitting moments before._

"_No!" the yowl pierced the high-tensioned air and Onestar turned his amber eyes in the direction of the entrance to Firestar's den. The malice in the WindClan leader's eyes turned to fear as Firestar flattened him to the stone, pinning him down with his paws pressed against Onestar's shoulders._

"_You will leave my Clan alone," Firestar hissed viciously, his face close to Onestar's. "You've done enough damage already." He released Onestar and allowed the brown tabby to scramble to his paws. Firestar spat in his face. "Leave now," his voice held a real threat, "And take your Clan with you."_

_Onestar retreated without being told twice and his yowl of retreat caused his warriors to flee, streaming from the clearing without trouble. Dawnpaw watched as Brackenfur and Cloudtail chased the enemy warriors into the bramble tunnel._

"_Thornclaw!" Brightheart's pain-filled moan caused Dawnpaw's heart to plummet as she spotted the golden-brown tom lying limply at the edge of the clearing, his blood already drying and stiffening his belly fur. Brightheart stood over her brother, pressing her nose to his cheek._

_Dawnpaw shivered and pressed her belly to the stone underneath, dread sitting heavily in her chest. "Oh no," she whispered. Then, her legs moving on their accord, she was hurrying down the tumble of rocks and she leaped down into the clearing once again._

"_Dawnbreeze, are you alright?" Dawnpaw turned her head and she stared at the approaching white and gray tom. _Cloudwhisker,_ was her initial thought, but then she realized that it was Snowkit and he had grown too, larger than herself. And he had called her _Dawnbreeze._ She knew that she didn't have a warrior name yet of course, but then she realized that this must be another of her mousebrained dreams._

"_I'm fine," she replied, and Dawnpaw noticed that her words were strangely muted and her ears were ringing. Snowkit's face was becoming blurry and she found it hard to see him as the edges of her vision were fading to black…_

Dawnpaw woke gasping for breath. She lifted her head from the moss, sweeping her gaze around her and was instantly relieved to find that she was back in the apprentices' den with her denmates sleeping soundly around her. After she had tamed her erratic breathing, she looked to the den entrance. It was still night.

_Not again_, she thought as she remembered her vivid dream. Those very same scenes had been present during her slumber for the past few nights, except for the ending where Snowkit is there. That part was new to her. Dawnpaw had been ignoring the dream, but now she wasn't so sure that it was a dream anymore.

Dawnpaw yawned and she realized that she should be getting back to sleep. Sorreltail wouldn't be too happy in the morning if she were too tired. She lowered her chin back onto the moss and sighed, closing her eyes and awaiting sleep once more.

"Dawnpaw! Pay attention!"

Dawnpaw blinked and, after giving her head a shake, looked to her mentor, who had brought her from her memories of her dream the night before. Hazelpaw and Dustpelt were both staring at her and Sorreltail was giving her an agitated glare.

"I'm sorry, Sorreltail, I was just thinking about something," Dawnpaw meowed, providing the lame excuse. She remembered that Dustpelt and Sorreltail had she and Hazeltail practicing to hunt squirrels by the Sky Oak.

By the withering look Sorreltail gave her, Dawnpaw knew that she didn't believe her. "Dustpelt, you can continue with Hazelpaw's training. I want to speak with Dawnpaw in private." Dustpelt nodded to her and he led Hazelpaw further into the undergrowth.

Pausing for a few heartbeats, Sorreltail didn't say anything. She just stared at Dawnpaw with a wondering expression, a curious gleam in her eyes. "You can tell me if there is something bothering you, Dawnpaw," she told her quietly, reminding Dawnpaw of Squirrelflight.

"There isn't anything bothering me, Sorreltail," Dawnpaw meowed, meeting her mentor's gaze. _Or at least it was only just another of my stupid dreams._

"Are you sure?" Sorreltail persisted. She brushed the tip of her tail over Dawnpaw's forehead. "Is your head hurting you? Maybe you should see Leafpool."

Dawnpaw pulled away from her. "I'm _fine_," she snapped. "If my head was hurting then I would have already gone to see Leafpool." Whipping around, Dawnpaw stalked away from her, anger boiling in her belly. Sorreltail did not call after her and Dawnpaw didn't look back once.

The more steps she took closer to camp, the more Dawnpaw realized that she should have been nicer to Sorreltail. After all, Dawnpaw had been the one to not pay attention. Sorreltail had no clue as to what was causing her apprentice to have momentary lapses in attention and she was doing the best she could, despite her disadvantages.

Dawnpaw sighed as she slowed to a stop, already more than half the way back to the camp. She didn't want to return to her patrol, she wasn't ready just yet to apologize to Sorreltail. _I'll just have to return to camp, then._

Sunhigh had yet to arrive by the time Dawnpaw had returned to camp, but the camp was already teaming with life. Brambleclaw was still sending out a few patrols and it was too joyous a day for any cat to still be sleeping. Dawnpaw spotted Cloudtail entering the nursery with a vole clamped in his jaws and the elders were lying on the Halfrock, basking in the sun's warming rays.

"Dawnpaw, over here!" Dawnpaw turned her head as she heard Redpaw's hiss. She spotted him standing close to the wall of the camp.

Without hesitation, Dawnpaw padded to meet him. "What is it this time?" she asked him. "I told you that Firestar wouldn't believe you."

Redpaw shook his head. "It's about Brightheart's kits and Snowkit. We have to make sure that Tigerstar doesn't recruit them. He needs followers and I'm sure he'd go after the most innocent members of ThunderClan. Brightheart's kits are too young but it won't long."

Dawnpaw was silent. She glanced to the nursery and found that Robinkit and Snowkit were playing outside, Snowkit pouncing on Robinkit's tail. They had yet to discover the worries of the trials that comes with becoming an apprentice, and Dawnpaw knew from experience that she would much rather be back in the nursery, curled up tightly beside her mother's belly than be sent into battle to see her Clanmates get hurt.

"I agree, but how are we supposed to do that?" Dawnpaw looked back to Redpaw.

Redpaw opened his mouth to speak, but Firestar called his name, interrupting their conversation. Their leader had gathered a patrol and they were waiting for Redpaw to join them. "I'll see you later, Dawnpaw," he murmured before racing off to meet up with them.

Dawnpaw watched as they left and she sighed, her gaze flitting back to the kits as they played. _StarClan help them_, she silently prayed.

**Well, I think that this chapter contains the largest amount of Dawnpaw's thoughts per chapter, not including her dream, but there were some thoughts in it. This was also a smaller chapter as well.**

**I sincerely hope that this chapter was satisfactory and by all means review!**


	9. Chapter 8

**I know, I know. It's been quite a while since I've updated and this chapter is long overdue. I've been busy and while that is no excuse, I found time to write this chapter. Anyways, it's been about half a moon of time since the last chapter Brightheart's kits will finally be introduced! Keep in mind though that Firestar may seem a little OOC here, but it is essential for the plot of my story so I don't want to hear any complaints.**

**I'm always welcome to reviews!**

A wavering burst of cool air rustled the branches of the apprentices' den as Dawnpaw lapped at her fur, still lying in her comfortable nest. Around her, few of her denmates remained in the den, most of them being out in the forest with their mentors. Sorreltail had dismissed Dawnpaw for the day after being on the dawn patrol and Dawnpaw had just woken from her nap she had had after returning to camp just as Silverpelt was fading in the sky.

She felt fresh and rejuvenated from her peaceful slumber. Her recurring nightmare had not come during her nap as well as during the night, for once. Finally, she had a break. As Dawnpaw smoothed down the fur on her flank, she breathed in deeply, relishing in the comforting, familiar mixture of scents of her denmates.

"You seem happy today, Dawnpaw." She glanced up at Bravepaw's softly-spoken comment. He sat in his own nest only two tail-lengths away from her, his striped tail covering his paws and green eyes glowing softly in the shade of cover the den provided.

"The borders were quiet this morning," Dawnpaw supplied a quick excuse. She knew that she must stir during her sleep at night during her nightmares, so the quality of her dreams was certainly not a secret among the apprentices that slept around her, but she wasn't quick to share their contents. Every night it was different in the slightest change possibly. A half-moon ago in her dream, Firestar had allowed Onestar to go free without inflicting a wound upon him, but now Onestar almost always lost a life or gained a scar one way or another during their squabble. Snowkit was still featured in it, becoming younger in every dream so that he was an apprentice now, and his presence was forever constant, just as Thornclaw's death.

Bravepaw didn't look as if he believed her, but he didn't question her further. With a muffled sigh, he got up and maneuvered his way out of the den, narrowly avoiding stepping on Hazelpaw's tail. The still-sleeping she-cat would not have been too pleased at whoever would have woken her up earlier than needed. Dawnpaw watched as he exited the den, waving her tail slightly in farewell as he glanced back at her.

As soon as his tail-tip had disappeared from sight Dawnpaw returned to her previous activity of thoroughly grooming her golden fur. She hadn't had much time to herself for the past few days when being constantly supplied to hunting and border patrols. The only time when Sorreltail had ever given her a break was for a meal or for sleep!

Granted, the WindClan border was active as ever and every ThunderClan cat was on high alert, but Dawnpaw had been beginning to become impatient with her mentor. She only found solace just that morning when Sorreltail had allowed her to stay in camp for the rest of the day.

Ever since her first dream long ago, the activity on their shared border with WindClan had spiked. It was a constant game. The WindClan scent markers would be partially in their territory and ThunderClan patrols would mark in _their_ territory. The tension that sparked every cat's nerves was present in almost all of them, except of course the kits, who were oblivious still to the hardy life of a warrior. They still found comfort in being close to their mothers' sides and enjoying the warmth of their mossy nests inside the nursery.

Dawnpaw sighed and she rose into a sitting position, finishing off the last of her ruffled fur. With a slight flick of her tail, she padded from the den and into the sunlit clearing. Blinking to adjust her eyes to the bright light, Dawnpaw noticed that many cats were up and the camp had a light-hearted feeling to it.

Across the clearing the queens shared a rabbit with the kits tussling a little ways away. Brightheart's kits had been allowed to leave the nursery and ever since then, the three kits have proven to be quite a handful, especially when Snowkit joined in willingly with Robinkit not too far behind them. The elders shared tongues just outside their den and Mousefur looked thoroughly pleased and content. It was obviously a good day for the Clan.

"It's such a beautiful day!" Dawnpaw shifted her gaze to see that Brightheart was stretched out comfortably beside Cloudtail near the shadows cast under the Highledge. Her mate was grooming the fur at her neck and Dawnpaw could hear her content purr from across the clearing.

"A good day for hunting," Brambleclaw agreed from not too far away from the couple as his amber eyes transfixed on the quivering of the bramble entrance tunnel. Squirrelflight entered the camp with a slight bounce in her steps and she bounded over to the fresh-kill pile to deposit her overflowing catch on top, followed by Spiderleg and Mousepaw.

Cloudtail looked up from his grooming. "Loosen up, Brambleclaw. It isn't as if WindClan will attack at this very moment!"

The sarcastic remark struck cord in Dawnpaw and she anxiously flicked her tail. His words reminded her of her dream and couldn't help but worry whether the dream meant something important or not. There was no way to be positively sure.

Brambleclaw whiskers twitched. "I'll stop worrying when you stop eating," he joked good-naturedly. Cloudtail huffed as Brightheart let out a _mrrow_ of laughter.

"Good one, Brambleclaw."

"He's right though," Firestar meowed as he leaped down the tumble of rocks descending from his den. "We never know when those fox-hearted cowards will attack."

Dawnpaw could hear the plain dislike for WindClan in his words, but she couldn't but notice a small glimmer of pain linger in his leaf-green gaze. She suddenly wondered just how the peace between ThunderClan and WindClan had ended. Stories from Mousefur and Longtail flooded her brain and she remembered that when the Clans arrived at the lake, it had been Tallstar to lead his Clan there, but he died shortly after arriving, anointing Onewhisker as his successor. Of course, stories of the past also included bits of how Firestar and Onestar had once been friends when warriors in their own respective Clans. So how, pray tell, did they drift apart and become so cold to one another?

_StarClan only knows_, Dawnpaw thought with an exasperated sigh. Whatever had gone wrong with the two was only between them and while she wasn't the only cat who had wondered, she wasn't about to ask Firestar about it.

Too absorbed in her thoughts about her leader, Dawnpaw failed to notice the kits had scampered closer to her. A flash of white in her peripheral vision was hardly enough warning before she felt a slight tug on her tail. As she snapped her head around to focus her gaze on the small white kit, she heard a small battle cry and turning her head, she realized in horror that she was the target of the five kits.

Dawnpaw slivered her trapped tail out from under Hailkit's tiny paws. He was Brightheart's only son and already reminded every cat of Cloudtail, though he had inherited his dark green eyes from Firestar, Cloudtail's uncle. Hailkit's sister, Cloverkit, had also received green eyes though she had obviously gained her white coat and ginger paws from Brightheart. Tansykit was a pale ginger she-cat and had white paws as well as blue eyes.

Dawnpaw pressed her belly to the sandy ground and cowered away from the nearing kits. Adrenaline coursed through her and she instinctively felt the need to flee, but she didn't want to disappoint the kits and ruin their game.

The first to pounce was Robinkit, who was the leader of the group. Although half the size of Dawnpaw, she was still able to knock the wind out of Dawnpaw as she rammed into her. Snowkit was quick to follow and leapt onto her back, sinking short claws into Dawnpaw's thick golden tabby fur. Cloverkit collided with Dawnpaw's haunches and as Tansykit smashed into her neck, she rolled onto her side and admitted defeat.

"I'm wounded! I'm dead!" she exclaimed and the kits chorused triumphant yowls.

"Alright, alright, I think that Dawnpaw's had enough." Dawnpaw felt her fur burn in embarrassment as she looked up as Mousefur meowed from just outside the elders' den not too far away. Longtail, despite his lack of sight, looked amused. Mousefur's whiskers twitched. "Why don't I tell you the story about the Great Journey?"

As quick as young kits can, the five of them immediately and eagerly stumbled off of Dawnpaw and raced away to give the old she-cat an attentive audience. As Dawnpaw stared after them she saw Mousefur give her a wink. Dawnpaw righted herself and she twitched her ears thankfully.

Turning away from the kits and elders, she realized that her newly-groomed fur was ruffled and dusty. _Great. I just finished making it perfect!_ With an exasperated sigh, Dawnpaw went back to smoothing down her fur until her coat with perfectly smooth and shiny.

Sighing as she finished her grooming, Dawnpaw relaxed. The ground beneath her was warm and she was very comfortable with just lying there. With the sun shining down on the camp, it warmed up her fur and a purr rumbled in her throat at her contentment. Closing her eyes, Dawnpaw lowered her head and rested her chin on her paws. It was only too easy for her to slide into a nap.

* * *

><p><em>Trees rushed by her in a blur and blood pounded in her ears. Blind fear coursed through her veins as her paws thudded on the forest floor. She didn't dare look over her shoulder for she knew that her pursuer was right on her tail. She could hear the crash of undergrowth behind her and the heavy breaths panting in effort.<em>

_Leaping over a fallen log lying in her path, she heard a snarl echo in her ears and nearly tumbled on her clumsy landing. Refusing to stop, she continued on. Her whole body trembled and her fur stood on end as her pupils narrowed to slits._

StarClan help me!_ Her prayer rang in her mind and she desperately increased her speed as she rounded a clump of brambles. If only another cat hadn't been approaching on the other side._

"_Sundapple! What's got you so riled up?" The gray and white she-cat gazed curiously at her through familiar dark blue eyes._

"_There's a fox. It's chasing me. We have to go now!" Sundapple hissed and her green eyes glanced back over her shoulder around the bend where the fox was sure to turn any moment now. As she shifted her gaze back to her friend, she gave her a nudge to her shoulder. "Come on, Mistymoon. We have to go now!"_

_Mistymoon stared at her with disbelieving eyes. "Really, Sundapple? A fox?"_

"_Yes!" she exclaimed. To her horror, she could hear the approaching heavy pawsteps thrumming on the ground. "We have to go!"_

_Mistymoon stiffened and her eyes stared past her, focusing on a completely different entity. "I's too late for that now."_

_Sundapple whipped around and her heart pounded in her chest as she spotted the fox standing just a few mouselengths away from them. Inching backward so that she stood beside Mistymoon, she felt her fur rise and her tail twitched. A hiss escaped her and she felt her fear pulsating through her, causing her claws to instinctively slide from their sheaths to protect herself. "I told you," she muttered to Mistymoon._

"_We have to fight it," Mistymoon murmured back and Sundapple rolled her eyes at her idea._

"_That's mousebrained. We can't fight a full-grown fox by ourselves!" she growled, keeping her eyes locked on the russet animal._

"_It must be desperate to try and bother the both of us," Mistymoon remarked. "It must be hungry."_

"_Which makes it even more dangerous!" Sundapple insisted._

_The fox took a confident step forward, amber eyes glowing, and Sundapple immediately took a step back, keeping an equal distance between herself and the fox. However, Mistymoon remained where she was, lowering her belly to the ground in a crouch._

_Before Sundapple could blink, Mistymoon had launched herself forward and, catching the fox off-guard at her boldness, slashed her claws across its chest before dropping and rolling expertly away. The fox howled in pain as blood streamed from the wound and directed its attention to Mistymoon._

"_Mistymoon, move!" Sundapple gasped. But Mistymoon was trapped. She crouched with her back against the brambles and the fox just in front of her. Her only escape routes were to the side, but she had hesitated._

_In that split second, the fox was on her._

"_Mistymoon!" Sundapple yowled and she raced forward, leaping onto the fox's back was claws outstretched. Sinking her claws into the fox's back, she held on for her life._

_Snarling, the fox tried to turn its head and reach her, but it didn't have the capabilities of a cat. It's neck was too stiff. The fox shook itself, trying to rattle its attacker, but Sundapple tightly shut her eyes and remained attached to the fox._

"_Sundapple, let go!" At the command, she immediately retracted her claws and her eyes opened as she was thrown from the fox's back. Landing heavily on her side, she remained on her side for a few heartbeats, waiting for her dizziness to pass. All the while, she could hear the voices of a few of her Clanmates and the fox growling and whimpering._

_Blinking several times, Sundapple cleared her vision and saw that a patrol had come to their rescue. Daisyleaf, Vinetail, and Crimsonpelt had the fox surrounded. Outnumbered and unwilling to go against four more cats, the fox retreated, disappearing into the undergrowth with Vinetail and Crimsonpelt following close behind._

_With the immediate threat gone, Sundapple calmed her nerves and relaxed. Then she remembered Mistymoon. Daisyleaf was bending over the she-cat with her head bowed and Sundapple felt her stomach churn anxiously. She rose slowly to her paws and crept forward with her head lowered and ears flat against her head. Standing before her, Sundapple felt her heart plummet and she gasped. Mistymoon's throat was torn and blood soaked the fur around the fatal wound. Her eyes had a glassy sheen as she stared off into the distance at nothing._

_A wail mounted in Sundapple's throat and she unsheathed her claws, sinking them into the ground. "Mistymoon!" she yowled, throwing her head back and gazing up at the cloudless blue sky._

* * *

><p>"Dawnpaw, wake up!"<p>

Her eyes snapped open and she immediately recoiled as she stared into the dark blue eyes of Snowkit. _The same as Mistymoon's,_ she noted. Her heart was racing wildly from her dream. _I'm back in ThunderClan. I'm safe._ Once she had gained her bearings, she was confused as ever. Where had her dream come from? She had been seeing through the eyes of Sundapple as she witnessed the death of one of her Clanmates, her friend.

_Sundapple_. Suddenly, Dawnpaw remembered that Cloudwhisker had had a mate named Sundapple and that she had died in a WindClan attack. She wondered if this was the same Sundapple, but she hadn't seen Cloudwhisker in her dream, though Mistymoon certainly looked similar to him.

"Are you okay, Dawnpaw?" Robinkit asked.

Dawnpaw blinked and she cleared her head of her musings as she directed her attention to the two kits. "I'm fine. What is it that you need?"

Robinkit opened her mouth to speak, but before she could get a word in a loud warning yowl exploded from the entrance tunnel. Dawnpaw bolted into a standing position and she ushered the kits behind her as Ashfur and Brackenfur entered the clearing in a run. Both of them were panting and their fur was fluffed up in terror.

"Three foxes, heading towards camp!" Ashfur gasped out.

**Another cliffhanger! I promise that I won't take as long writing then next chapter. Christmas break is starting on Friday so I'll have plenty of time to write during the upcoming days.**

**What did you guys think of this chapter? Of Dawnpaw's vision? I'd like to hear your opinions!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Happy Holidays, you guys! I figured that I should give you all something to read as my present to you, though I am a day late. Christmas was yesterday where I live. Anyways, here's the continuation from the cliffhanger in Chapter 8. I hope this meets everyone's expectation!**

**A million thanks to my reviewers, followers, and favorites too. I love getting them!**

**Please R & R!**

Dawnpaw's felt her fur bristle and her eyes narrowed at Ashfur's proclamation. Around her, her Clanmates murmured and some hissed or growled in defiance. Firestar sat there, his gaze sweeping silently over his Clan. With ease, he rose and padded to Ashfur, who was still standing there, eyes wide and with a slightly wild look in them. As Firestar approached him, Dawnpaw marveled at how calm he was being even in the face of imminent peril.

Slowly but surely, the Clan began to quiet as heartbeats went by and Dawnpaw felt the brush of fur as Snowkit rounded her legs. He was completely unaware of the danger he was in and only curious of all of the commotion around him. However, Robinkit had gotten the gist of everything going on and she was more cautious, having noticed the other cats' distress.

"What's going on?" Snowkit squeaked as he tipped his head back to look up at Dawnpaw. His question was meant for her to answer.

Unsure whether or not to keep the kit ignorant from the approaching danger, she swept her tail around both him and Robinkit, keeping them close to her side. "Hush for now. Firestar must speak."

She turned her head to Firestar just as he began. "We should remain calm. We aren't going to accomplish anything by panicking—"

Mousefur interrupted him. "We aren't to get anything done just standing around either!"

Firestar ignored her. Though Dawnpaw saw Longtail whisper something to her with a stern expression on his face. Brightheart's kits tussled obliviously next to them.

"We must stop the foxes before they can reach the camp. I will have two patrols of warriors intercept them right before they enter and to fight them off. More cats will stay behind to defend the camp if the foxes manages to get through our defenses," he meowed. Flicking his tail to Brambleclaw, he added, "I will lead one of the patrols and Brambleclaw will lead another."

The moment his voice ceased cats swarmed around him and they all spoke at once. Dawnpaw, not wanting to get caught up in that cluster, bent her head and swooped down on Snowkit, holding onto the loose skin of his scruff gently. He protested quietly but she ignored him. "Come on, Robinkit," she murmured to the other kit around Snowkit's fluffy fur. She didn't look back over her shoulder as she padded toward the nursery to make sure that Robinkit was following. The she-kit was obedient enough.

"Oh thank you, Dawnpaw. I was looking for those two everywhere!" Ferncloud exclaimed as she spotted Dawnpaw with the two kits. "Just get them settled in their nest for right now. Brightheart and Daisy have gone to get the other kits."

Dawnpaw dipped her head in assent and she entered the comforting environment of the nursery. Finding the nest that smelled strongly of Ferncloud, she deposited Snowkit into it and Robinkit climbed in to crouch beside him. Her blue eyes were wide, but Dawnpaw didn't know exactly why that was.

After moments of quiet, the little tabby kit spoke up. "Are we going to die?"

Dawnpaw, who had been staring at the entrance of den, awaiting the arrival of the queens and the rest of the kits, snapped her head down to stare at the kit. _She's afraid_, Dawnpaw realized. Dawnpaw's eyes softened and she lowered her head to place a comforting lick between Robinkit's ears. "Not if I can help it. I won't let anything get to you, alright?"

Robinkit nodded, seeming to relax. "Thanks, Dawnpaw."

"Of course." Dawnpaw imagined the kit as just a victim of the foxes' ruthless wrath and she shivered. Her paws tingled as fresh adrenaline coursed through her. _Nothing _would hurt Robinkit, or Snowkit, or Brightheart's kits. Dawnpaw wouldn't allow. Her claws unsheathed and sank into the bracken underpaw. _Let them try,_ Dawnpaw spat mentally. _I'll tear out their throats_, she vowed protectively.

Suddenly, the nursery entrance trembled violently and Dawnpaw pricked her ears, quickly putting herself between the newcomer and the kits. However, Dawnpaw relaxed her tensed muscles as Brightheart slid inside, Cloverkit hanging from her mouth. Daisy and Ferncloud both followed her quickly, both carrying another of the kits.

The three kits were placed with Robinkit and Snowkit and the five of them huddled together. Dawnpaw turned to Ferncloud. "Were the patrols sent out?"

Ferncloud nodded, her gaze was somber. "Yes, they left a few moments ago."

"Who was with them?"

"Firestar had Sorreltail, Sandstorm, Bravepaw, Cloudtail, and Hazelpaw. Brambleclaw took Redpaw, Stormfur, Birchfall, and Berrypaw," Daisy told her.

Dawnpaw stared back, mortified. "That hardly leaves enough warriors to fight off the foxes if they get past the patrols!"

Brightheart gravely nodded. "Firestar sent Mousepaw to round up the hunting patrols and border patrols."

"He left us on our own?" Dawnpaw mumbled in disbelief. None of the queens could answer her. Dawnpaw could almost hear the question rattling around in their minds.

"Daisy and I will fight," Ferncloud meowed and Dawnpaw looked at her. Her eyes blazed with confidence and Dawnpaw couldn't help but marvel her courage. She was willing to lay down her life for her Clan even though she was still nursing two kits.

"Hey, don't count me out!" Brightheart exclaimed.

"No, your kits are too young to go on without their mother. You can't fight and then lose your life. They must have a mother," Daisy told her sternly and Brightheart huffed indignantly, her flicking tail expressed her agitation.

"I can fight too!" Snowkit protested, not wanting to be left out.

Dawnpaw turned her head to him and opened her mouth to explain that he was too young when an ear-splitting screech sounding from in the clearing. Without a moment's hesitation, she turned away and dared out of the den.

What she saw stopped her in her tracks. Horror caused her fur to rise and the blood pounded in her ears. A large, full-grown fox stood over Brook in the center of the clearing, she had been the only warrior left in the camp. The she-cat was limp but Dawnpaw couldn't see any blood coating her pelt. For the briefest moment, an image of Mistymoon's blood-soaked body drifted into her mind and a growl rose in her throat. Unfreezing, she started forward, hackles raised.

Only a heartbeat had passed. And in another heartbeat, Brook could be dead.

Fur brushed on each side of her flank and she knew that Daisy and Ferncloud had joined her. "Leave her alone, you big brute!" Daisy hissed, causing the fox to snap its head around, fixing its glowing amber eyes on the cream she-cat. Thick saliva dripped from its jaw, pooling on the ground around it.

"Split up. Circle it carefully. When I say 'now' we'll all attack at once. That will confuse it," Ferncloud murmured to them without moving her gaze away from the fox.

Without another word shared between the three of them, Ferncloud and Daisy split away and round the fox, giving themselves at least six tail-lengths of room to maneuver. Dawnpaw narrowed her eyes at the fox. It still had its eyes on Daisy, but every so often it would glance at Ferncloud and over its shoulder at her. The fox was wary and alert, but it was still confident. Foxes are cowards in a fight. They would flee if they felt that they were outmatched.

"Now!"

At that moment, the fox had its back to Dawnpaw and she made a quick decision. Taking just one running step, Dawnpaw sprang from the ground soared onto the fox's back, sinking her claws in. The tactic was very similar to Sundapple's.

Ferncloud had gone for the fox's haunches and she tore her claws into the fox's flank and in a heartbeat she rolled away, avoiding the fox's vicious teeth. Dawnpaw blinked rapidly to clear the dizziness in her head from the fox's rapid movements. Daisy managed to catch the fox on its shoulder with a severe bite wound. The fox snarled in frustration as Daisy skittered out of reach.

Then it was Dawnpaw's turn to be paid attention to and the fox shook itself, causing Dawnpaw to lurch painfully side to side, but her claws remained inserted into the fox's back. "Dawnpaw, be careful!" Ferncloud called to her, but Dawnpaw was too lightheaded and nauseated to answer.

Ferncloud and Daisy dove in for another go but the fox was ready this time. Daisy struck first, scratching the fox's belly with sharp claws. Just before she was in the safe, the fox slammed its heavily-armed paw into Daisy's side, causing the she-cat to gasp before yowling in pain, curling in on herself into a ball.

Ferncloud nipped the base of the fox's plumed tail, causing blood to dribble from the deep bite. As she retreated, the fox lunged and as Dawnpaw went flying, she heard Ferncloud's howl of pain.

Dawnpaw landed heavily on her side and she exhaled sharply, winded. It was several heartbeats before she was able to thoroughly breath again, but even as she did there was a dull pain in her chest. Aching all over, Dawnpaw slowly mounted to her paws and she saw through heavily lidded eyes that Ferncloud had blood pulsing from a wound on her leg. The fox had left her and Dawnpaw's gaze swiveled around the clearing until she finally spotted it, staring right at her through menacing eyes and muscles taut, ready to leap.

Dawnpaw sighed. She was so _tired_. Her brain was fuzzy and she could feel the lull of the darkness behind her eyes. _I might as well give up. I have no chance._

Dawnpaw felt her legs begin shaking from supporting her and she collapsed in a heap. However, her ears were still working properly and to her surprise, she heard a cat call her name.

She turned her head, her cheek rubbing against the ground. Brambleclaw caught her gaze. Cats moved behind him, streaming into the clearing and cornering the fox, but Dawnpaw paid no attention to them.

Brambleclaw rushed forward, spraying up dust behind him, and he ran toward her. Skidding to a stop beside her, he bent his head over her. Dawnpaw could see the anguish in his eyes. She tried to open her mouth to speak to him, but she couldn't. Her jaw felt too heavy.

"Dawnpaw, no!" Squirrelflight's distressed voice rang in her ears. The dark ginger-furred she-cat came into view and she frantically nosed Dawnpaw over, looking for wounds. Dawnpaw was too tired to cry out in pain as she skimmed around Dawnpaw's side.

"Please," Brambleclaw murmured, just loud enough for Dawnpaw to hear him, "Please, StarClan, don't take her away now. Please."

That was the very last thing she heard.

* * *

><p>She stood among trees and shrubbery, in a forest different than the one she knew as her home. Dawnpaw lifted her face to the sky and saw that it was dark and the moon solely shone, basking the forest in a soft silver light. She was in StarClan. Again.<p>

Only this time Dawnpaw couldn't locate Cloudwhisker. The large gray and white tom was nowhere to be found.

"I hope you don't make this a habit, Dawnpaw." She whirled around at the voice and started when she saw the tortoiseshell tom standing there. Although he was larger than her, he was still smaller than most of the grown toms she'd seen in ThunderClan and especially much smaller than Cloudwhisker. His tail also reminded her distinctly of a fox, all bushy and a very dark ginger color.

"Redtail," Dawnpaw murmured, more to herself than for him. She remembered the description given to her by Mousefur. He was Sandstorm's father, making him Dawnpaw's great-grandfather. He was also the origin of Bravepaw's small size and Redpaw's namesake.

"You are correct," he meowed, his whiskers twitching.

"Is this like last time?" Dawnpaw asked him, glancing around her to see if she could spot Cloudwhisker's lighter pelt in the dim light.

"Your body needs to rest for now. I volunteered to come and keep you company."

"Volunteered?" Dawnpaw echoed. Did Cloudwhisker volunteer to save her from the Dark Forest last time? She nearly asked her question but then thought better of it. She would ask Cloudwhisker again whenever she saw him next. So, she decided on the next important question lingering in her mind. "What about Daisy and Ferncloud?"

"They are both fine. Daisy only has a slight fracture to her rib and Ferncloud is still healing from her wound, but they will live. As will Brook," Redtail told her and Dawnpaw sighed in relief. She visibly relaxed into a sitting position, curling her tail over her paws.

"Is there anything you wanted to talk about?" Dawnpaw asked after a few moments of silence.

Redtail stared at her through calculating eyes, assessing her. Dawnpaw squirmed under his intense gaze. "You remind of a cat," he finally spoke. He paused, slightly tilting his head to side. "Bluestar was a strong she-cat, not afraid to speak her mind or challenge another cat's decision or opinion. However, she was also very intelligent and she had a soft spot for her close friends and the young members of ThunderClan. You remind me of her, Dawnpaw."

Dawnpaw blinked, taken aback at being compared to one of the most legendary leaders of ThunderClan. "Are you sure? I don't think so. I'm not so nice to the kits when they make me want to throttle them and I have a nasty temper sometimes."

Redtail let out a _mrrow_ of laughter. "Bluestar doubted herself, too. When you caught her on an off day it wasn't such a good thing either. In any case, I think that you _do_ have a soft spot for kits. I saw you make that promise to Robinkit earlier. You were protective of all five of the kits. I'd say that you were soft on them when you allowed them to pounce on you, even when you were at a disadvantage. You didn't want to ruin their fun."

Dawnpaw soared with pride at the thought of being compared to Bluestar and her eyes glowed.

"And," he continued, "Just like her, you have an important destiny."

"What do you mean?" Dawnpaw asked, confused.

"I mean to say that there is something coming—something big—and you and your siblings play a large part in it. Dawnpaw, I cannot tell you of what is to surely come, but you must be careful. Betrayal is a pain worse than any wound. Don't let it deter you from your path, or you may find yourself on the losing side of the battle."

"Battle?" Dawnpaw exclaimed, her voice higher-pitched than normal. Her head swam dizzyingly, trying to process what he had just told her. "What do you mean? I don't understand! Why can't you tell me?"

"Hush," Redtail silenced her frantic mews. He leaned forward and stretched his head toward her to rub his muzzle against hers and lick her ear. "Don't you worry too much about this information now, you still have time yet."

Dawnpaw sighed, calming herself down with slow, even breaths. She closed her eyes to help herself and it was several moments before she was able to open them again. "Can I go now?" she whispered.

Redtail gazed at her with sympathetic eyes. "Yes, you can return to ThunderClan."

Dawnpaw nodded and she quickly lowered herself to the ground and tucked herself into a sleeping position. She closed her eyes to return to her Clan, but then they snapped open again. She lifted her chin off her paws. "Redtail?" she asked. His ears pricked up in attention. "Have you ever met a cat named Sundapple here in StarClan?"

Redtail was silent before he answered and he gazed steadily at Dawnpaw for a few heartbeats before replying, "Yes, just once."

**So how did you guys like it? I'd like to hear!**


	11. Chapter 10

**It's certainly been a while, guys! With the new semester at my school I was forced to push back my writing while adjusting to my new classes and schedule changes. Plus, I've been recently captivated by the Divergent series by Veronica Roth (LOVE IT), anyone know of it? But I finally got a chance to write and I'm pleasantly surprised at how it turned out. **

**Anyway, thanks to any reviews/favorites/follows this story has gotten.**

**Don't be afraid to review!**

The diverse variety of trees towered over them as the patrol padded on toward the ShadowClan border. Dawnpaw had taken up the back and she trudged after Sorreltail, Whitewing, Honeypaw, and Bravepaw. She still felt the ache in her muscles from the fox attack just a few days ago. Leafpool was still worrying over her because that had been the second time within a short time period that she'd been hurt. It didn't help that she was Leafpool's sister's daughter, though.

_Ferncloud and Daisy need the care more than I do,_ Dawnpaw thought. The two had actually sustained injuries after all. Ferncloud was allowed to leave because Leafpool just patched her up with marigold, but Daisy still had to remain in the medicine cat's den for now because it would take time for her fracture to mend.

Dawnpaw lashed her tail angrily, eyes flashing. _I should have done something to prevent everything that happened to them,_ she thought guiltily, furious with herself. If it hadn't been for the return of the patrols the fox would have killed all of them and then would have moved on to the kits that were lying in fear in the nursery with only Brightheart to look over them.

There was still a ringing in her ears whenever she moved too quickly or when she ran too fast. _At least the kits are okay, though._ Dawnpaw sighed. She was frustrated not only with herself but also with StarClan. Redtail had refused to tell her about whatever betrayal was coming and she couldn't help but feel cheated. What did they expect from her? There was nothing special about her.

Her nightmare was back too, and she couldn't help but be anxious as ever. Snowkit in her dream had changed from an apprentice to an older kit and Dawnpaw felt a sense of horrible foreboding. Everything was still the same and Dawnpaw could barely look at Thornclaw in her waking world without the image of his limp, bloody form sprawled out in the center of the clearing. _But he's still alive, he's still here,_ she told herself every time, but she wasn't even sure what was happening herself. Redtail had told her that there was a battle coming. Was this what he had meant?

"Dawnpaw?" Bravepaw's soft voice brought her from her musing, "Are you okay? You're starting to fall behind."

Dawnpaw blinked and she realized that Bravepaw was right. There were a good couple of fox-lengths between herself and the rest of the patrol. The others hadn't stopped but Bravepaw was looking back at her with concerned green eyes. With just a nod to her brother, she quickened her pace and followed more closely. Bravepaw didn't say more but he continued to stare at her for a few lasting heartbeats before turning his head away and making conversation with Honeypaw.

Leaping over a fallen branch to follow her Clanmates, Dawnpaw remembered the vision of the fox with Sundapple before her own encounter with the same creature. She was still puzzled beyond belief as to why she had seen it in the first place. The only tie that she had to Sundapple was her meeting Cloudwhisker just that one time. So why would she see some kind of memory of his past mate's life?

Dawnpaw shook her head, sighing in defeat. Her life had been so much more normal before her visit with Cloudwhisker. She had been a regular ThunderClan apprentice with her mind on battle strategies and hunting for her Clan, but now she was untangling a web of mysteries that managed to elude her.

Dawnpaw forced herself to push her worries to the edge of her mind at the reminder. She shouldn't have her head in the clouds at a moment like this. She was supposed to be focusing on protecting her Clan! She couldn't do that if she never learned a thing from Sorreltail because her thoughts were elsewhere!

Opening her mouth, Dawnpaw scented the air, tasting the comforting fragrances of the forest. She pushed past them, recognizing the individual smells of her Clanmates and she couldn't make out any trace of ShadowClan so far. They were nearing the border so none of the ShadowClan cats had strayed too far this way.

The border scent marks were fresh, but there were no obvious signs of hostility on the ThunderClan side. As Sorreltail and Whitewing scent marked, Dawnpaw, Bravepaw, and Honeypaw searched the nearby undergrowth for any traces of ShadowClan.

Dawnpaw sniffed around a patch of brambles and she started as the sharp tendrils trembled as a mouse darted from cover, racing wildly away right into the paws of Sorreltail. The tortoiseshell she-cat reacted swiftly and cleanly broke the mouse's neck with a blow to its neck.

"Nice catch!" Dawnpaw meowed and added sheepishly, "It scared me a little."

Sorreltail's chest rumbled with a purr. "Your senses will sharpen with time, as well as your reflexes. By the time I'm a stinky old elder you'll be the best hunter in ThunderClan!"

Honeypaw let out a _mrrow_ of laughter. "You had better not let Mousefur hear you say that!"

Sorreltail shivered. "Oh, I forgot. Her hearing never faded with age." She did a great show of inspecting her surroundings, eyeing each hiding place with wide, fearful eyes.

Dawnpaw's tail curled in amusement and she could hear Bravepaw's muffled laughter from behind a clump of ferns. Whitewing nudged her friend's shoulder with her nose. "Don't worry. Her tongue and hearing may have remained through the moons, but her eyesight is another story. She probably couldn't tell the difference between you and Dawnpaw!"

"Dawnpaw's fluffier," Bravepaw meowed, sticking his head out of the ferns just outside Dawnpaw's immediate range of movement. "Like the sheep those WindClan apprentices were talking about."

"You mean the clouds with legs?" Honeypaw sniggered.

"Hey!" Dawnpaw batted her ear playfully.

"You're forgetting Cloudtail, Bravepaw," Sorreltail meowed. "He's fluffier than Dawnpaw and Squirrelflight combined!"

As Dawnpaw purred her laughter, she felt an overwhelming sense of peace. She loved being able to joke about things like this. But as Redtail had told her, a battle was looming on the horizon and it was only a matter of time until it was upon them.

"_Mistypaw, wait!" Sunpaw called as the gray and white she-cat launched herself over the ice of the wide river. Looking down at the frosty-white stuff, she dapped her paw at it and brought it back as is stung her pad. Lifting her head again to see Mistypaw sliding further away with her fur fluffed in excitement. Sighing reluctantly, Sunpaw placed her two front paws on the ice and eased her hind paws onto the slick surface, immediately losing her footing. With a hiss of annoyance towards her friend, Sunpaw unsheathed her claws and sank them into the ice to get a firm grip of it._

_Carefully picking her way over the surface of the ice, Sunpaw called again, "Mistypaw wait for me!"_

_By the time she had neared Mistypaw enough, she was shivering and her paws had gone numb from being in such close contact with the ice. "What is the point of this?" she growled to Mistypaw, her tail flicking agitatedly._

_Mistypaw ignored her scathing tone. Instead, she squealed in delight as she spotted a shallow spot. Drawing closer, she peered down through the ice, leaving Sunpaw to roll her eyes and follow her slowly._

"_Look at the water below that isn't frozen! There's fish!" Mistypaw exclaimed, her blue eyes as wide as the full moon._

_Sunpaw looked through the clear ice and saw with a spark of amazement that Mistypaw was right. _Aren't they cold? _Sunpaw dimly thought as she watched the flashes of silver swim under her paws._

"_It's deeper in the center," Mistypaw meowed, almost to herself, "There are more fish there."_

_She glided to the middle of the river and looked down, but her ears flattened in disappointment. "The ice is too thick here. Maybe if I just make a little hole…"_

_Mistypaw unsheathed her claws and she scratched at the surface, making tiny grooves but otherwise not harming the ice. Lashing her tail, she hissed in frustration._

_Sunpaw clawed her way over. "I don't think you're going to be able to see anything here, furball," she observed with amusement, catching Mistypaw's ear with her paw._

"_I know that!" Mistypaw cried indignantly, launching herself at Sunpaw and sending them sprawling over the ice, causing Sunpaw to slide over an unusual patch of thinner ice in the center of the river._

_As Sunpaw moved to return to Mistypaw, a crack split the leaf-bare air and she yelped as the ice under her hind legs gave way. Gasping, she lurched forward just in time to catch her claws on a thicker portion of ice, keeping half of her out of the startlingly cold water. Her hind legs churned in the freezing river water and her blood had gone cold in horror._

"_Sunpaw!" Mistypaw screeched and she hurtled over the ice to her, eyes stretched wide in terror. "Hold on!"_

_But she was slipping. The river water, though under ice, was still as swift as when it was thawed out and was dragging at her body and her claws weren't going to hold forever._

"_Mistypaw! Sunpaw!" The new voice caught Sunpaw's attention and she looked up onto the ThunderClan bank to see Runningbreeze, Goldenlily, and Cloudwhisker racing toward them, parallel to the river._

_Relief washed through Sunpaw, but she was still dangerously close to slipping into the river current and under the ice. Scrabbling at the ice, Sunpaw desperately searched for a pawhold to keep her from slipping but the cold, black water was at her chest now. Blood pounded in her ears and she recognized her heartbeat, but it was sluggish and her vision was slipping away._

"_Sunpaw, hold on!" Mistypaw's voice rang in her ears as she leaned over her, casting a shadow over the gap in the ice._

"_You're too small," Sunpaw choked out, not able to keep the trembling out of her voice. She was so tired._

_Mistypaw twisted her head to look for something beyond Sunpaw's range of vision. "Hold on!" she repeated again, "They'll be here soon."_

_Water swirled around her, lulling her to sleep and she sighed, closing her eyes for just a moment before she realized that that wasn't the best idea. Snapping her eyes open again and almost let go of the ice in surprise as dark blue eyes bore into hers. They were reminiscent to Mistypaw's, but different all the same._

"_Sunpaw, be strong for a moment more," Cloudwhisker told her and he leaned down over her, gripping the scruff of her neck with his teeth gently. Grunting, he hauled her up and out of the river, holding her over the ice. For a heartbeat, she felt almost like a kit again, being held by a much larger cat as he climbed carefully onto the bank._

_Sunpaw shivered as Cloudwhisker deposited her on the cold ground, though warmer than the water. "Are you okay?" he asked, concerned._

_Before Sunpaw could answer, Goldenlily nudged him away, leaning over her kit. "Sunpaw!" she cried in anguish, furiously licking her face before moving to her soaking fur._

_Mistypaw appeared beside her and she pressed her muzzle against Sunpaw's, purring. "I'm so glad you're okay!"_

_Sunpaw shuddered as a tremor passed through her. She was still so cold._

"_Goldenlily, licking her is not going to help," Runningbreeze meowed softly, laying a comforting tail on her shoulder. "We have to get her back to camp to Clovershine before she freezes to death."_

_Goldenlily pulled away and Sunpaw immediately missed her warmth. Goldenlily nodded to Runningbreeze and she turned to Cloudwhisker. "Can you carry her? I don't think that she'll be able to walk."_

"_Of course," Cloudwhisker told her. He stepped forward and grasped Sunpaw's scruff again, lifting her off the ground. Sunpaw curled in on herself and held her tail off the ground so that it wouldn't drag. His breath stirred her neck fur lightly at the close proximity and she relished in the small warmth._

_As they slowly moved forward, Sunpaw swayed in the air and rumbling of the comforting purr in his chest finally brought sleep upon her._

Dawnpaw gasped awake, quivering with cold. Her awareness strengthening after a few heartbeats, she recognized the steady thrum of rain drops on the roof of their den and she hissed quietly in disgust. _The roof is leaking again_. Rising to her paws, she shook out her damp fur and stepped out her soaked nest. Looking around the den, she realized that her nest was the only wet one, being at the edge of the den.

Suddenly, she shuddered at the sudden remembrance of her dream. _It happened again, _Dawnpaw realized, _but Sundapple was younger this time._ _She was an apprentice this time—like me._

Suddenly, she felt an icy cold spread through her that had nothing to do with the rain and the fur along her spine bristled. Something was wrong. She could feel it.

Emerging from the apprentices' den, she flattened her ears against the rain that pounded on her from above and she looked out into the clearing. It was silent, not a cat in sight. Not even Brackenfur, who was supposed to be on watch.

Slipping along the perimeter of the clearing, Dawnpaw slid by each of the dens, pausing to peer into each before moving on again. Halfway through her venture, she pushed her head into the nursery and looked around. All the queens slept in their respective nests but on a closer look, Brightheart's kits, Snowkit, and Robinkit were nowhere to be found.

Dread pulled at Dawnpaw's belly as she pushed into the den and woke the nearest queen—Ferncloud—with a slight nudge with nose. The gray queen's eyes fluttered open and she blinked up at her.

"Dawnpaw?" she asked, bewildered. "What are you doing here?"

"Where are the kits?"

Ferncloud turned her head to look at the empty space beside her belly and then snapped her head around to get a look at the other nests around her. As the realization hit her, Ferncloud jumped to her paws. "The kits!" she cried, rousing the other queens immediately. "They're gone!"

**Anybody noticing a trend in these visions that Dawnpaw is getting? These little snippets of Sundapple's life will play a large part in the end. Is anybody getting tired of reading about it, though? I know that there have been a lot in the past chapters and I want to make sure that nobody is feeling reserved about them. If so, please review or PM me with some suggestions!**

**By the way, if anybody is feeling a little overwhelmed by these new characters (the ones from Sundapple's past), just about all of them are on my profile page.**


	12. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven is here! I was sitting at home while sick and decided that I might as well get **_**something**_** done while not at school. This is what blossomed from my brain! By the way, have any of you seen the movie Battleship? It's fantastic!**

**Don't be afraid to review! They're gladly welcomed!**

"How could they have slipped out? Where was Brackenfur? Why did they sneak out of camp?" Honeypaw prattled in Dawnpaw's ear and she tried vainly not to claw her in frustration.

I can't believe they left me behind, she thought indignantly, ignoring Honeypaw's questions. I'm the one who alerted Ferncloud about the kits!

After coming the realization that the kits had indeed gone, Ferncloud had raced to Firestar's den while the other queens desperately searched the camp for any sign of them. By that time, the whole Clan had been shaken from sleep. However, the search was to no avail. The kits had left the camp long ago.

After calming the Clan down, Firestar divided up search parties among the warriors to go out into the wet forest to search for the lost kits, completely ignoring the apprentices all huddled in the cold downpour. When the patrols had gone out the apprentices had retired back to their drier den and some, like Berrypaw and Birdpaw, had gone back to sleep.

Suddenly, Dawnpaw stood, her chin held high. "I can't stand waiting here and letting the warriors go and search for the kits. I'm going to go and help search for them!"

Cinderpaw looked up at her with round eyes. "We weren't chosen for a search party. Maybe it's best that we stay in the camp."

Dawnpaw shook her head furiously. "What if the kits are lost and they've gotten themselves into trouble? They could have strayed into ShadowClan territory, fell into the stream by the border, or they would be freezing out there in this rain. They would stand a much better chance with more eyes looking for them."

Bravepaw sighed and he stood in his nest. "She's right. We should be out there, too."

"I'm going too," Hazelpaw meowed, stretching. "I can't go back to sleep in this rain, anyway."

Redpaw nodded in agreement and he moved to sit beside Dawnpaw. "Count me in."

"It'll be wet," Honeypaw contemplated, "But I'll go as well."

Mousepaw rose beside his sister as Poppypaw eagerly paced in circles around her nest, tail held high.

Cinderpaw anxiously looked at all of them, and then at Birdpaw and Berrypaw, before she sighed and meowed, "I might as well go. It would be selfish if I didn't."

Dawnpaw purred at their support and she moved to look out into the clearing. There wasn't a cat in sight. Glancing back over her shoulder at all them, she murmured, "We'll slip out through the tunnel. That's the quickest way, but we'll have to be real quiet."

As the others nodded assent, she slid from the den and padded to the entrance tunnel. The other apprentices followed her closely, one behind the other as they slipped into the bramble tunnel. Entering the forest, Dawnpaw looked around. The kits' scents would have already been washed out by the rain.

"Which way would they have gone?" Honeypaw asked beside her.

Bravepaw squinted into the rain at their surroundings. "They probably wanted to see the WindClan border," he supplied, "Everybody is always talking about it so they were bound to get curious."

Dawnpaw nodded. It made sense. She started forward through the rain, her paws easily finding a well-worn path that was often used through the territory. "Be on the lookout for the search parties," she called back over her shoulder. "If they find us out here, we are in loads of trouble."

The rain drops weren't as frequent under the cover of branches and leaves overhead, but every once in a while one would find its way to her fur and Dawnpaw would shiver at the reminder of her horrific dream of Sunpaw nearly drowning. If Cloudwhisker and his patrol had not shown up when they did, then she would have been claimed by the river.

What's worse was that Dawnpaw had experienced it through Sunpaw's eyes and that had been a trying experience. It had been terrible. Sunpaw was smaller than Dawnpaw and with the extra strength in Dawnpaw's limbs, she probably would have been able to haul herself out of the river, but Sunpaw must have been a newer apprentice then and she was by far smaller and less built.

Meanwhile, Dawnpaw found that Sundapple's Cloudwhisker and the Cloudwhisker that she had met were as similar in character as can be. Both were incredibly quiet and reserved, and just as Cloudwhisker had been much larger than Sunpaw, he had towered over Dawnpaw as well. And both were incredibly handsome, she sighed and then her eyes widened in realization at her thought. He's from the past, she mentally scolded herself, there isn't any use falling for him when he's long dead by now!

Ducking under a low hanging branch and peering further into the drenched undergrowth, Dawnpaw sighed. Brambleclaw and his patrol's scent was only slightly still fresh now so they were long gone and had already passed through, meaning that the kits weren't there.

"Come on," she murmured to the others and continued on.

And Redtail. What in StarClan's name had he meant about a betrayal? From whom? Why would any cat want to betray her? The questions ricocheted off the walls of her mind and bounced back and forth as if they were balls of moss and the kits were playing with them. What was he going on about when he compared her to Bluestar, anyway? There was no way that Dawnpaw was anything relatively close to being like the former leader of ThunderClan. From the stories the elders have shared with her, Bluestar was a majestic and strong she-cat. Dawnpaw…was not.

His mention unnerved her to no end, too. As if having dreams of one wasn't enough, she had to have a StarClan cat _confirm_ it. That meant that her dreams were going to come true, and that was the frightening aspect. If what she dreamt was going to be real, did that mean that her dreams of Sundapple's past were real, too?

Dawnpaw groaned silently in frustration. She had so many questions trapped inside of her that she could not share with any cat. They would all think that she was crazy. _Am I crazy?_ Dawnpaw contemplated, unsure of herself.

A spark of anger ignited in her belly. Why is all this happening to _her_? Why was she condemned to have these dreams of some past and future? A little more than a moon ago she had been a normal apprentice. Then she received her dreams and everything had gone downhill after that. Now she was definitely _not_ normal.

"Dawnpaw!" Honeypaw hissed in her ear and she snapped her head around, halting her steps at the force in her friend's words. In the sudden silence, Dawnpaw heard sharp commands being given in the distance. Brambleclaw's patrol.

Dawnpaw pressed her belly to the ground. "Let's move around them. If we get caught then we'll be stuck cleaning out the elders' den for moons."

Creeping to her right through the undergrowth and keeping a respectable distance between herself and the patrol's search area, she avoided any possible twig in her path that had the ability to call themselves to their Clanmates' attention.

Soon enough, the patrol was put far behind them and they started off again. Having lost some time, their surroundings were becoming lighter as the sun rose behind the thick gray clouds billowing angrily above. Rain still pounded on them and Dawnpaw's fur was slicked down against her skin, encasing her in a cool shell.

The ground beneath her paws was soft, loosened from the downpour. "We're getting closer to the border," she murmured, more to herself than to for her companions. The trees thinned out noticeably but not completely as they came to the stream. Scanning the nearby bank, Dawnpaw felt her heart sink as she realized that the kits were nowhere in sight.

"Let's keep going," Cinderpaw suggested. "They might have been making their way to the lake."

Hazelpaw looked back at her over her shoulder as they started to travel downstream parallel to the running water. "I thought you didn't want to come."

Cinderpaw ducked her head in embarrassment and admitted softly, "Maybe Dawnpaw was right."

"Of course she is," Redpaw's whiskers twitched, "She's _always_ right."

Dawnpaw deftly swept her tails over her brother's ears. "Stop it," she protested lightly at his teasing.

Suddenly, Mousepaw stiffened as a breeze washed over them. "I smell WindClan," he hissed, fur bristling.

"The kits!" she yelped and darted forward with the other apprentices racing after her.

Several swift heartbeats later, the repulsive scent of WindClan hit her like a wall and she skidded to a stop, causing Poppypaw and Cinderpaw to crash into her. Ignoring the two she-cats' mutterings, Dawnpaw narrowed her eyes against the rain as she squinted into the distance. There, she spotted the figures on the _ThunderClan_ side of the river.

"Come on," she murmured to the others. Ears flattened to her head, she stalked forward, her eyes trained ahead as the shapes became more recognizable. Ashfoot sat beside a tabby tom and a smaller brown and white tom. A black she-cat had her back to them and a white she-cat leaned over something smaller. Something partially white.

"What do you think you're doing?" Dawnpaw snarled, causing the WindClan cats' heads to snap to attention and all five of them stared at them in surprise.

"Dawnpaw!" Robinkit's head appeared from around the black she-cat. "You found us!"

Dawnpaw ignored the kit as she closed the distance between herself and the WindClan cats. The apprentices were several wary tail-lengths behind her, but they followed her nonetheless. "I said," Dawnpaw growled, "What do you think you are going?"

Ashfoot opened her mouth to speak but before she could the black she-cat whipped around to face her. "What is it to you? You're just an apprentice."

Anger boiled deep in her belly. "You are on _ThunderClan_ territory. It has everything to do with a _ThunderClan_ apprentice. You shouldn't be here, especially when caught with _ThunderClan_ kits," Dawnpaw spat furiously.

"We didn't steal them, if that is what you mean!" the tabby warrior hissed indignantly.

"Then what are you doing on our side of the border with our kits?" Dawnpaw felt Poppypaw step up beside her, her eyes gleaming.

The black she-cat lowered into a crouch with a feral growl and just as she was prepared to strike, Ashfoot's commanding yowl froze her in place, "Enough of this bickering!"

Obeying her deputy's orders to stand down, the black she-cat straightened and she backed away, but the fire did not die out in her eyes.

"We had to pluck this little one out of the stream," the white she-cat meowed calmly with no hostility in her voice. Dawnpaw stared at her for a moment before following her gaze to the scrap of fur lying at her paws.

"Snowkit!" she cried, lurching forward and nudging his body gently with his nose, only to receive no response. Her throat closing with fear, she struggled to speak as she looked up at the white she-cat. "Is he dead?"

"Not yet," Ashfoot spoke, "But he will soon without a warm den and dry nest."

Relief washed through Dawnpaw and she felt herself relaxing the muscles she had no idea were tensed in the first place. Lifting her head, she spotted Robinkit sitting just a tail-length away with Brightheart's kits huddled against her, shivering.

"Thank you for saving them," Dawnpaw dipped her head to Ashfoot in gratitude, "But we must be getting them home."

Ashfoot nodded. "Of course, and we will return to our territory."

The white she-cat was the last to jump the stream. She bent her head to lick Snowkit once while her Clanmates waited for her on the other side of the border. Lifting her head she met Dawnpaw's gaze. "Take care of him, Dawnpaw."

Dawnpaw blinked in surprise. How could this she-cat know her name? Before she could voice her question, the white she-cat retreated and the WindClan cats had disappeared into their territory.

Not wanting to waste any time, Dawnpaw bent down and grasped Snowkit's scruff. As she lifted him from the ground, she was surprised to find that he was limp and refused to move, unlike the lively kit. Without being asked, Redpaw leaned down to pick up Robinkit while Honeypaw, Cinderpaw, and Mousepaw carried Brightheart's kits.

With a flick of her tail, Dawnpaw hurried back in the direction of camp.

Dawnpaw slowed as she neared the camp, unsure of how to approach. Sure, they had found the kits, but they had also left the camp without proper permission. With Snowkit resting against her chest, Dawnpaw padded into the entrance tunnel and into the camp.

Inside, Ferncloud was the first queen to spot them. "They're back!" she exclaimed with a sigh of relief and she raced across the clearing to them with Brightheart at her heels.

As the queens embraced their returned kits, Dawnpaw slid into the medicine cats' den. With a twinge of sadness she realized that Snowkit would not have a mother to rejoice in his coming home.

Leafpool looked up from her herbs as she entered. "Dawnpaw! Is that Snowkit?"

Dawnpaw lowered him into an unused mossy nest. "We met a WindClan patrol at the border. They fished him out of the stream."

Leafpool nodded as she bent over Snowkit. Dawnpaw watched anxiously as the medicine cat looked over the gray and white kit with a mound of herbs beside her.

Finally, she looked up at Dawnpaw. "He doesn't have any visible wounds and whatever water he would have swallowed is out of his lungs. He has a slight fever so he probably will have a cold when he wakes up. Other than that he's perfectly fine."

"Then why is he still sleeping?" Dawnpaw questioned, shifting to lean on her right side.

"His body is tired. The poor kit trekked all the way to the WindClan border and he nearly drowned. He needs the rest," Leafpool spoke calmly, resting a comforting tail over Dawnpaw's shoulders.

"What about the other kits? What can I do?"

"I'll see to them. Right now, Snowkit needs warmth too. Normally I would ask the kit's mother, but Snowkit doesn't have one while Ferncloud and Brightheart are preoccupied with their kits and Daisy is injured," Leafpool told her.

Dawnpaw nodded. "Okay, I'll lie with him."

Leafpool backed away and she retreated from the den to tend to the other kits. Dawnpaw sighed and she stepped into the nest, lowering herself onto the moss. Gently, she lifted Snowkit from the edge of the nest and deposited against her side as he slept. He was still wet and the coldness caused her to shiver. Leaning over him, she lapped at his fur, licking away the rain water until his pelt was soft and barely damp.

Sighing again, Dawnpaw rested her head on her paws and tucked her tail around Snowkit. Closing her eyes, she drifted into a comforting darkness.

* * *

><p>The trees were familiar to her by now and she fully expected to be greeted by Redtail again. A number of questions flooded her mind and she readied to speak them, eagerly wanting answers to them. Only, she was alone again. <em>I hope that it isn't any cat new. I'm having a little trouble distinguishing between these StarClan cats. <em>After her many visions of Sundapple's past and all the stories she had learned over the moons from the elders and queens, there were many of cats she knew were dead and in StarClan.

"The moon turns your fur silver."

Dawnpaw stiffened at the familiar voice and she whisked around, but there was no cat there and especially not the cat she was really hoping to see. _Am I imagining things now?_ "Hello?"

"You bothered to remember me?"

Dawnpaw turned again but again there wasn't a cat in sight. _I am losing my mind_. "Please, I can't see you."

"Why are you here?"

No one there. She was starting to think that this was some cruel joke being played on her. "Stop it!" she cried.

"Dawnpaw."

Dawnpaw gasped and she reluctantly turned. Nothing. A sob worked its way from her throat and she closed her eyes, unwilling to trust her vision any longer. This was _insane. I'm insane._

Then she felt a slight breeze stir her whiskers lightly and her eyes fluttered open again, only to meet the dizzying pair of incredibly dark blue jewels.

**Ooh, I love cliffhangers! But of course, reading to one is not as fun. Can any of you guess who this cat is? I think it's obvious, but oh well.**

**I've got a question as to Snowkit's lineage. Should his parents be Clan-born or rogues? If they are Clan-born, I have an idea of who they would be, but I'm open to suggestions!**


	13. Chapter 12

**I can't believe it's been a year since I've first started this and I realized that I need to speed it up. I find it crazy that I've only been able to fit twelve chapters into this story in a year! Anyway, I finished up this chapter tonight because I felt that I needed to post it soon.**

**Enjoy!**

Dawnpaw's breath caught in her throat as she met his gaze and her limbs went numb. She couldn't move in the slightest, frozen in that moment of silence where everything else fell away at the edges. Drinking in the sight of him, Dawnpaw was again reminded at how much larger he was than her. Her ear-tips would barely skim his chin if she were ever that close to him.

"Cloudwhisker," Dawnpaw breathed, feeling a rush of euphoria spread from her nose to her tail-tip as she whispered his name.

"Why are you here?" he repeated and the question took her by surprise.

Dawnpaw's eyes narrowed. "How am I supposed to know? I fell asleep with Snowkit and now I'm here."

Cloudwhisker's ears perked up. "Who's Snowkit?"

"None of your business, that's for sure," Dawnpaw retorted angrily, but curiosity won out, "How could you not know? If Redtail can watch me, then surely you can."

Cloudwhisker's tail-tip twitched. "Why would I watch you?" He sounded genuinely curious.

Dawnpaw felt her face burn. "I-I didn't mean it like that. What I meant was that surely you pay attention to what happens in ThunderClan."

"Hmm." Cloudwhisker didn't shed any light on the matter. He just sat there, tail-lengths away from her, and stared at her. Dawnpaw stared back, but soon she felt uncomfortable under his intense gaze. Looking away, she scanned her surroundings.

Then she spotted a pair of dark blue eyes peeking out from behind the willow tree several fox-lengths away. Meeting her gaze, the cat didn't retreat when caught, but the small gray and white she-cat stepped into full view.

"I'm no good at hiding," she meowed almost apologetically, "Especially with you around."

"Mistymoon!" Cloudwhisker's snarl made Dawnpaw snap her head around and stare at him in surprise. She'd only seen him angry at Frostblaze before. "What do you think you are doing?"

Mistymoon dismissed him with a twitch of her ear, ignoring his outburst. Instead, she padded toward Dawnpaw, eyes shining. "Cloudwhisker doesn't want me to see you, but I can't imagine why. After all, _he_ gets to spend time with you."

Dawnpaw's eyes were wide in shock. "How do you know me?"

"Unlike Cloudwhisker, I love to keep up with my former Clan. I know all about you and your visions about Sundapple and her past," Mistymoon told her, but then sobered. "I suppose you recall the first one you experienced was of my death, right? And then when Sundapple and I were apprentices."

"Yes, I do remember," Dawnpaw meowed. "Do you know why I get them?"

"That's enough." Cloudwhisker was suddenly there, blocking Mistymoon's path. He stood close to her and Dawnpaw had trouble looking at Mistymoon over his back.

"Why can't I see her?" Dawnpaw demanded, her anger flaring as she stared indignantly up at him. "I've seen you and Redtail! I've seen Frostblaze too. Last I recall, you weren't a fan of her, so why not your own sister?"

Cloudwhisker's eyes narrowed. "I never told you that she was my sister."

Mistymoon took a step closer, ignoring his growl of warning. "You can stop it, Cloudwhisker, no matter how much you want to," she told him pointedly.

"Stop what?" Dawnpaw questioned.

Cloudwhisker glared at Mistymoon. "Do not tell her."

Mistymoon gave a little jump of excitement as he retreated, stalking into the trees and muttering something under his breath too quiet for Dawnpaw's ears. Dawnpaw watched as he padded away and did so until he was swallowed up by the underlying brush.

"What's his problem?" Dawnpaw asked Mistymoon as soon as she was sure that he was gone for now.

Mistymoon dismissed her question with a wave of her tail. "Enough about him. Sundapple would never forgive me if she knew that all we were talking about featured him."

"I bet she wouldn't," Dawnpaw muttered too softly for Mistymoon's ears. Sundapple was Cloudwhisker's _mate_. Of course she wouldn't want them to be talking specifically about him.

"So, how's life in ThunderClan nowadays?" Mistymoon asked.

Dawnpaw shrugged her shoulders. "Okay, I guess. Though, WindClan is giving us some trouble."

Mistymoon's gaze darkened. "They've always been trouble."

Dawnpaw was about to ask why when she remembered something Cloudwhisker had told her the first time she visited StarClan. "Oh, right. Sundapple died during an attack courtesy of WindClan, didn't she?"

Mistymoon flicked her tail. "You make it sound so harmless. She was _murdered_ in cold blood. That certain cat is in the Dark Forest for what he did, and he deserved what he got, too."

"I'm sorry," she meowed softly.

Mistymoon shook her head. "No, you've nothing to be sorry for. It's all in the past now and had nothing to do with you."

Dawnpaw nodded, not knowing what to say. After several heartbeats in awkward silence, she decided to change the topic. "Why were you so eager to talk to me anyway?"

"I wanted to see what Cloudwhisker was keeping to himself," Mistymoon meowed. "I haven't seen him in a while."

"Really?" Dawnpaw asked, intrigued. "Where was he?"

Mistymoon shrugged. "I'm not sure. It isn't really my place to ask him. Besides, he's been touchy for a long time now. I wouldn't be surprised if he just wanted to get away for a little while."

"I've got another question," Dawnpaw told her, "How come I haven't seen Sundapple in StarClan? Did she go to the Dark Forest?"

"She didn't go to the Dark Forest," Mistymoon meowed.

"Then where is she?"

"Don't you dare answer that question, either." Dawnpaw looked over her shoulder to see the Cloudwhisker had returned and he was padding back to them.

"Aw, you're no fun, Cloudwhisker. She has a right to know," Mistymoon whined.

"This isn't some game, Mistymoon. She has to figure it out for herself," Cloudwhisker told her sternly, giving her a pointed look.

Mistymoon grunted. "Goodbye, Dawnpaw," she turned to Dawnpaw, "I hope I can see you again some time."

With that, she turned and padded away, leaving Dawnpaw only partly satisfied. Her most important answers remained unanswered. As soon as Mistymoon was out of hearing distance, Dawnpaw turned sharply to Cloudwhisker. "Why can't I know where Sundapple is?"

"Because," he replied shortly.

"Because why?" Dawnpaw retorted.

"Because I said so, and that should be good enough," Cloudwhisker told her.

Dawnpaw suddenly felt like she was being talked down as if he were her mentor and she was his apprentice. "I don't appreciate being let out here, you know."

"Then don't try to stick your nose in another cat's business, Dawnpaw. It's better if you leave yourself out of it." He sounded almost tired.

"That's it? You honestly think that I'm going to take that?" Dawnpaw meowed disbelievingly.

Cloudwhisker sighed. "No, but I'm suggesting you to."

"What is so wrong with me knowing what is going on? I have every right to know about Sundapple. It's her life I'm seeing, after all!"

"I'm telling you to keep yourself out of my business, Dawnpaw. Why can't you respect my wishes?"

Dawnpaw knew that she was being stubborn and unreasonable, but he was hiding something from her. She could feel it, and she didn't like it. "Why should I? It isn't like you respect mine."

"That's _enough_! I'm tired of hearing about Sundapple!" Cloudwhisker hissed, his eyes flaring up like two blue flames flickering dangerously.

"Then answer my simple question," she persisted, "Where is Sundapple?"

"Stop it!" he screeched and before she could duck he struck her cheek with an unsheathed paw.

Dawnpaw gasped and she stumbled back away from him as pain sliced through her from the scratch on her muzzle. Her eyes stung and her heart pounded in her chest. Staring up at his face, she saw the fire die in his eyes and they widened in horror.

"Dawnpaw," he breathed in an apologetic tone, "I'm so sorry…"

He took a step forward and leaned toward her, but Dawnpaw scrambled to get away from him. "Stay away from me," she spat, baring her teeth. Whipping around, she raced into the undergrowth.

"Dawnpaw!" She ignored his desperate cry as she ran, the sting of the pain reminding her that he wasn't anything like what she thought he was. Leaves whipped her face as she went, but she didn't care. Nothing hurt more than crumpling heart.

It was only when she noticed that her path was too dim to see anything properly did she slow to a wary walk. Dawnpaw looked up and realized that the moon had disappeared behind nonexistent clouds and there were no stars in sight. Everything was dark. She had run blindly into the Dark Forest territory.

"Let me go!" the yowl echoed through the trees.

Dawnpaw tensed and she hesitantly crept forward toward the area she had heard the voice resonating from. Sliding into a clump of ferns, she peered under a series of stems into a small clearing where a large tabby pinned a brown and white tom to the ground, pressing his face into the dirt. Behind him, a smaller tabby tom stood beside a pure black she-cat.

"Tigerstar," she breathed quietly to herself and she also noticed that the brown and white cat was the same tom she had seen in the WindClan patrol in the waking world.

"You let them go, Harepaw, you insolent apprentice!" Tigerstar growled deeply recesses of his throat. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't snap your neck right now!"

Dawnpaw coiled to spring and help the tom in need, but she held herself back. There was no way that the two of them could defeat Tigerstar together, not even considering the fact that there were two other battle-ready warriors right behind him. It would be foolish of her to attack now. She would only get herself killed.

"Tigerstar, let him go," the black she-cat commanded. Her voice was quiet, but there was authority to it unlike Tigerstar's.

The tabby snapped his head around to glare at her. "Why?"

"We need more recruits, fox-breath," she retorted, causing Tigerstar's lip to curl. "Those kits were useless to us anyway. We couldn't have trained them in any case."

Tigerstar growled, but he released Harepaw. The tom retched, spitting up dirt before shooting off into the trees. Tigerstar watched him go before whirling around and thrusting his face close to the black she-cat's. "I think you're getting too soft on these apprentices, Ebonyfrost."

Dawnpaw watched, amazed, as the she-cat didn't even flinch.

"Yet, you let him go," Ebonyflight pointed out. "You know I was right."

"You scared him well enough," the smaller version of Tigerstar assured. Dawnpaw recognized him easily as Hawkfrost.

"He shouldn't have let those kits go. We needed them and they would have been a fine asset to the Dark Forest is we taught them properly," Tigerstar complained.

"Stop complaining like a kit, Tigerstar. We have bigger things to worry about than a little apprentice," Ebonyflight told him. "Did you speak with your son's kits?"

Dawnpaw pricked her ears to attention. She was speaking about her and her siblings.

"Yes," Tigerstar growled, unsheathing his claws and flexing them against the ground. "They are a flock of traitors, those four. They all rejected the Dark Forest easily. Dawnpaw even had help."

"What do you mean?" Ebonyflight questioned beseechingly.

"Some StarClan cat," Hawkfrost hissed, his eyes gleaming.

"Cloudwhisker," Tigerstar spat. "He interrupted us before we could do anything to win her over. I asked around about him. Apparently, he had no business even knowing Dawnpaw. He joined StarClan long before the Clans left the old forest."

"Then why did he come?" Ebonyflight was interested now.

"I'm not sure, other than the fact that she has a resemblance to his mate, Sundapple."

"Interesting," Ebonyflight wrapped her tail over her paws. "Whoever this Cloudwhisker character is, he obviously has some sort of connection to Dawnpaw. It will be useful in the future, I'm sure."

Dawnpaw felt a cold sensation creeping up her spine and she backed away from the clearing, only to bump into a solid wall of fur. "And where do you think you're going?"

Feeling herself go numb with fear, Dawnpaw slowly turned around to stare up at the huge, scarred dark brown tabby tom. His amber eyes glinted dangerously as he took pleasure in her fear. Blood pounding in her ears, Dawnpaw desperately searched for an escape route, but she was sure that this cat would never allow her to escape with her pelt.

_I'll go for it anyway_, she briefly thought before racing around the tom and back in the direction of what she hoped was the StarClan border. He was hot on her tail. She could practically feel the earth trembling under her own paws and she fearfully stretched her legs to their limit, soaring over a fallen branch in her path.

"Get back here, you mangy apprentice!" the tom snarled, though Dawnpaw noted that he sounded out of breath. _Someone must be out of practice_, she thought smugly.

Her superior thoughts faltered immediately as she streaked by two other Dark Forest cats, both larger than her. They hesitated for a moment, but once they saw the cat in pursuit, they quickly gave chase.

Dawnpaw thought that she would collapse in relief the heartbeat she saw the borderline, a fine definition between the darkness and moonlight. Not daring to look over her shoulder at the Dark Forest cats, she bolted for the light.

Just as her front paws had touched the crease between territories, claws raked her flank, causing her to stumble and she hit the silvery grass hard. Her pain barely registered before the tom had his face close to hers and he growled, raising a paw to her throat. "You won't get away that easily."

"Brokenstar!" the sharp voice hissed and the tom immediately pulled away. "You are not permitted on StarClan grounds."

Dawnpaw peered around him and took in the sight before her. There stood Bluestar, in all her grace and beauty. Fully exposed to the moon beams, her pelt shone a magnificent silver and her eyes gleamed as she glared at the Dark Forest cat. Behind her, Redtail sat with his tail flicking erratically, the only sign that he was extremely irritated. Another tortoiseshell and white she-cat sat beside him, a character that Dawnpaw didn't recognize. Beyond them, Cloudwhisker sat dutifully, a threatening presence even with his gaze trained on his paws.

With one last glance at Dawnpaw Brokenstar retreated slowly, taking his time to travel just a single tail-length. His growl could be heard even after Dawnpaw could see him no longer.

As Dawnpaw started to get up, she opened her mouth to thank the former ThunderClan leader, on low to clamp jaw shut and groan through clenched teeth as a heat as strong as fire spread through her limbs. She fell back with a gasp of pain. Her eyes glazed over and she desperately blinked to clear them, turning her head to spy the nasty wound in her side. A collection of deep claw marks oozing blood.

"Dawnpaw?" Cloudwhisker's frantic voice echoed faintly in her ears. Dawnpaw could barely drag her horrified gaze from the scratches to meet his concerned gaze. She was surprised at how close he was now, his face not even a tail-length away as he loomed over her. Unable to help herself, she flinched as the memory of his blow drifted across her mind. He sighed. "Dawnpaw, I'm not going to hurt you. Are you hurting?"

Dawnpaw wanted badly to reply with the smart remark "What does it look like?", but she knew that that specific retort wouldn't have helped the matter. Besides, she couldn't seem to open her mouth anyway, her jaw muscles unwilling to obey her commands.

Bluestar was beside Cloudwhisker, her tail resting on his shoulder. "She'll be fine. She's leaving very soon."

"But—"

"Leafpool will take great care of her," the tortoiseshell she-cat assure, a warmth in her tone suggesting that she was familiar with the ThunderClan medicine cat's work. "Dawnpaw is in the safest paws."

Dawnpaw just stared at her, which was all she really could do at the moment. Shouldn't _she_ have some reassurance? Not Cloudwhisker! Why did he have to have reassurance of Leafpool's capable abilities? After all, Dawnpaw was the wounded one.

"I know, Spottedleaf," Cloudwhisker sighed, not taking his eyes off Dawnpaw. They suddenly grew mournful. "I'm so sorry for what I did, Dawnpaw. I wasn't thinking clearly at all. I know it isn't much of an excuse, but I was under a lot of stress over some things."

Dawnpaw twitched her ear weakly. She wanted to ask him about the causes of his stress, but sleep was calling to her, begging her to return to her own world. She resist the pull. The edges of her vision closed in. She barely felt the lick Cloudwhisker deposited between her ears in almost an affectionate manner before she gave way to unconsciousness. But by then, she wasn't sure if she had imagined it.

**Well, what did you think of Dawnpaw's mini-adventure in StarClan/Dark Forest? She's back to the waking world after this and we'll see some suspicions in the next chapter from a few cats. Just about a moon has passed I believe, so a Gathering is on the horizon! We can catch up on some of the other Clans, then.**


	14. Chapter 13

**After taking a leave of absence longer than I expected, I'm finally back! Happy to see me? Oh well, I think this chapter will be a little surprising near the end, though. ;)**

**Please R & R!**

Dawnpaw peeled her eyes open, but she grimaced and blinked as bright light flooded her vision. After several moments her eyes adjusted and she could see just fine. She was still in Leafpool's den and Snowkit was still burrowed in her soft and long belly fur, sleeping soundly. Shifting slightly, Dawnpaw gasped as a wave of pain crashed through her senses and she clenched her teeth, craning her neck to spy the gash in her side. At the moment, her raw flesh was coated in a slimy substance and a swath of cobwebs.

With a gasp, her dream rushed back to her. "Cloudwhisker," she murmured to a specific no one.

Snowkit stirred at her belly and she looked down at him, watching as his dark blue eyes opened. He blinked several times before yawning widely, revealing a row of perfectly white pointed teeth.

Squirming, trying to get to his paws, he realized that he was bathed in striped golden fur. He turned up his head to gaze at her. "Dawnpaw? Where am I?"

"You're safe in Leafpool's den," she comforted him, licking the top of his head. "You shouldn't have gone outside of the camp," she scolded him and he grimaced. "Everyone was worried for you and your denmates."

"We were just bored!" he protested lightly, defending his actions.

"Nevertheless, you have to follow the rules," Dawnpaw told him. "There's a reason that Firestar keeps the kits in camp. You would have drowned if it hadn't been for the WindClan patrol."

Sensing defeat, Snowkit looked at his paws, grumbling something under his breath that Dawnpaw couldn't make out.

"Oh good, you both are awake." Dawnpaw looked up to see Leafpool padding toward them from her den. "How are you feeling, Snowkit?"

"Fine!" Snowkit insisted. "Can I go back to the nursery to play?"

Leafpool considered it for a moment before answering with a short, "Yes."

Snowkit leaped up and he hopped out of the nest. "Thanks, Dawnpaw!" he called over his shoulder as he raced into the clearing.

Leafpool then turned to Dawnpaw. "Now, how are _you_ feeling?"

"Just a little pain," Dawnpaw told her. "Other than that, I feel okay."

"Your wound is healing nicely so far, but I'm still not sure how you managed to get that from a thorn bush," Leafpool meowed.

Dawnpaw squirmed slightly under her intense stare. "I'm fine. It was just an accident," she lied.

"Be careful, Dawnpaw," Leafpool warned and Dawnpaw was under the suspicion that she was hinting at some topic completely different than getting hurt. "You may leave, but Brambleclaw told me that he wants to speak with you."

Dawnpaw nodded and she climbed to her paws, ignoring the small twinge of pain. She shook scraps of moss from her fur before padding to the den entrance. Just as she was leaving, she heard Leafpool calling after her, "Take it easy for a few days, too. You have to let your wound heal."

Dawnpaw padded into the clearing and she stopped, scanning the cats for her father. She was bewildered as to why he would need to speak with her so suddenly. As far as she knew, her training was coming along fine and she hadn't done anything that she wasn't supposed to do besides the little excursion from the night before.

Finally spotting him sharing tongues with Cloudtail and Spiderleg, she caught his eye. As he dismissed himself from the two, he twitched his tail, flicking it toward the camp entrance tunnel. Dawnpaw nodded slightly and she padded across the clearing as he slid into the brambles.

Dawnpaw padded into the tunnel and as she came out into the forest on the other side, she saw that Brambleclaw was waiting for her a little ways away from camp. He waited for her to draw near.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" she asked him pleasantly, finding that his eyes were devoid of anger.

"Did you go to the Dark Forest last night?" he blurted out and Dawnpaw cringed away from him in surprise at his question. "Leafpool told me that your wound wasn't there when you brought Snowkit in."

"Not on purpose," Dawnpaw meowed, searching for an explanation. She didn't want to tell him about Cloudwhisker and StarClan yet. She especially didn't want to tell him of her stupid mistake of running away from Cloudwhisker heartbroken and stumbling blindly into Dark Forest territory. She didn't do in on purpose, but that didn't mean that it had been a mousebrained thing to do.

Brambleclaw sighed. "But you do see Tigerstar, don't you?"

Dawnpaw nodded. "Yes, but Brokenstar gave me my wound. Redpaw has been there before too. He told Firestar about it, but he just brushed it away."

Brambleclaw narrowed his eyes. "He didn't tell me about that," he murmured before leaning forward to give Dawnpaw a lick on her head. "Be careful, Dawnpaw. Don't approach anymore Dark Forest cats."

Dawnpaw nodded assent and he pressed his muzzle against hers for a moment before retreating back to the camp. Dawnpaw watched him go and she sighed, dropping her chin so that it rested on her chest. She hated lying to him, but it was the best she could do with what she knew. So far, she hardly knew why she received her visions of Sundapple's past in her dreams, or why the battle dream still hadn't faded completely. She had a nagging suspicion, though, that StarClan had very well known why.

"Why must _I_ be left out on this? After all, it's actually happening to me!" she vented to no cat in particular. After she received no reply, she huffed and stalked off after Brambleclaw, her tail twitching in frustration.

* * *

><p>"Dawnpaw, do you want to go on a hunting patrol with us?"<p>

Dawnpaw looked up at Birdpaw, lifting her chin off her paws and blinking to chase away sleep. Wordlessly, she nodded and yawned, climbing to her paws and stretching in her nest. After a moment to collect herself, she padded after Birdpaw into the clearing where Mousepaw, Birchfall, and Spiderleg.

As they filed through the entrance tunnel and into the forest, Mousepaw dropped back to pad beside Dawnpaw. "Honeypaw was looking for you earlier today after she heard that you were discharged by Leafpool. She couldn't wait to hunt with you."

Dawnpaw purred in amusement. "I bet she wasn't happy that I had fallen asleep on her."

"No, she wasn't," Mousepaw chuckled in agreement.

They fell silent and carried on at the rear of the group. As they passed over a dead fallen log, Dawnpaw winced as she landed heavily on the other side, a sharp flash of pain reminding her that she should take it easy.

"Are you okay?" Mousepaw asked, touching her shoulder with his tail-tip.

"I'm fine," she assured him, slightly annoyed that he had witnessed her brief moment of weakness.

"Are you sure?" Mousepaw continued. "Maybe you shouldn't have gone out this early. You might reopen that wound."

"I said that I was _fine_," Dawnpaw snapped at him, brushing by him to catch up with their hunting party.

Too late, she realized that she shouldn't have been so cross with him. He had only been worried for her. She should feel flattered and not defensive, but a part of her was annoyed by his concern. _I'm not a kit, I shouldn't be treated like one,_ she reasoned.

Birdpaw cast a sidelong glance at her as she slid in beside her, leaving Mousepaw to trail after them. "He was only worried for you," she murmured, too low for Mousepaw or the older warriors to hear.

"I'm fine," Dawnpaw repeated just as quietly.

Birdpaw sighed and shook her head in exasperation. "Don't be so quick to dismiss him, Dawnpaw. Get your head out of the clouds."

"What do you mean?" Dawnpaw asked, utterly bewildered.

Birdpaw opened her mouth to reply, but a breeze wafted toward them and she stiffened, her mind leaving the topic completely. "Squirrel!"

Dawnpaw nodded, her own mouth watering as the scent washed over her. She felt her muscles tense and her ears prick up to hear for the scuffling of the nearby prey. Spiderleg and Birchfall fell back, leaving the apprentices to the hunt.

Ignoring her instinct to pounce as soon as she spotted the creature a few tail-lengths away, she waved Birdpaw forward with her tail. "You scented it first. It's yours."

"Thanks," Birdpaw meowed, refusing to pry her eyes away from the squirrel scuttling over the ground, its back to them. Her sleek tortoiseshell pelt rippled as she fell into a stalking stance and crept forward, avoiding fallen twigs. Her tail was stretched out behind her, parallel to the ground.

Just a few tail-lengths away from the squirrel, she pounced and soured over the gap until her unsheathed claws slashed her prey's throat before it even knew what had happened. The squirrel went limp at her paws and she crowed with triumph, turning to Dawnpaw.

"Did you see that? That was amazing!" she burst out and Dawnpaw twitched her ear, padding up to her and giving her catch an admiring sniff.

"That was a great catch," she purred and Birdpaw raised her chin proudly.

"I wish Brackenfur had been here to see it, though," Birdpaw meowed regretfully.

"I'll be sure to tell him," Spiderleg promised as he and Birchfall returned, a sparrow clamped Birchfall's jaws.

"Brightheart's kits will be happy tonight," Mousepaw meowed, trotted up beside Birdpaw.

Birdpaw ducked her head in embarrassment and lapped at her chest fur nervously, avoiding his gaze. Dawnpaw narrowed her eyes at her sister. Why had she cheered her on when she obviously fancied him?

"Help!" The cry rang through the forest and Dawnpaw's mind cleared. She was on all her paws in a heartbeat and racing in the direction the yowl had come from with the others around her.

Pushing through a bramble thicket, Dawnpaw gasped as she broke into the small clearing as she spotted the dark, lumbering creature towering over Cinderpaw. The gray tabby apprentice was trembling in fear as she stared up at it, her eyes wide as moons.

With a furious caterwaul, Spiderleg launched himself at the creature with Birchfall on his tail. Birdpaw nudged Cinderpaw to safety as her attacker was occupied before racing back to assist her Clanmates.

Dawnpaw was still staring it with horror. "What is it?"

"A badger," she nearly jumped at Mousepaw's reply and she looked at him, finding him to be glaring at the thing. "A menace in the forest."

As far as Dawnpaw knew, there had been no previous badger sightings or attacks from as far back as she could remember, so she was curious to know why he sounded so familiar with them. Shaking her head, she abandoned her need to ask questions and she leaped forward to help in the attack.

But a sickening crunch of bone froze her blood and she stared at the limp form lying underneath the badger's paws. His amber eyes lay open, glazed over and staring into empty space as blood trickled from his mouth that sagged open.

A cold shiver swept through her and Dawnpaw's eyes stung as she stared at the lifeless body of her Clanmate. She was dimly aware of badger retreating into the undergrowth and Cinderpaw's mournful yowl.

Fur brushing her flank brought her back to full attention and she turned her head to look at Birdpaw's sad eyes. "Ferncloud will be devastated," she whispered.

Dawnpaw blinked and she took a shaky breath as her legs moved her forward to where Spiderleg was hunched over his brother's body. The black and brown warrior had his nose pressed into Birchfall's fur and his eyes were closed.

Closing Birchfall's eyes with her paw, Dawnpaw touched Spiderleg's shoulder with her nose. "We have to get him back to camp and tell Firestar of the badger."

Spiderleg's eyes slowly flickered open and Dawnpaw exhaled, looking away from his grief-stricken eyes. He gradually hauled himself off the ground and together, he and Mousepaw carried Birchfall between the two of them.

Silently, Dawnpaw, Cinderpaw, and Birdpaw padded after them, their heads lowered and grieving their lost Clanmate.

Dawnpaw sighed and lifted her head, looking up at the tops of the trees where even the birds had stopped singing. The forest sounds had faded away into a deafening silence that rang in Dawnpaw's ears. A single question skipped through her mind on repeat as they made their journey back to camp. _Why?_

**This one is a shorter than most of the other chapters, but I sure surprised you guys, huh? I know that they are people out there who are mimicking Dawnpaw's question and are asking why Birchfall was killed off, but I have my reasons and it will play an important part in the future. Next chapter, I think will include the next Gathering, oh goody.**

**Any questions or suggestions, just PM me!**


	15. Chapter 14

**Haha, hey guys…**

**I'm just gonna get off saying that I'm literally tearing my hair out with all the excitement with all of these movies coming out or getting to come out. Divergent with their casting news (Theo James is so HOT); The Host is coming out in 6 days; Beautiful Creatures, I've heard, was amazing, but I haven't seen it yet; Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters is coming August 16 *happy dance*; Catching Fire in November; The City of Bones from the Mortal Instruments Series; and Star Trek Into Darkness! Needless to say that I'm going to go broke before 2014.**

**R&R!**

The full moon shone brightly through the trees, casting a silvery glow into camp clearing. Dawnpaw sat beside Honeypaw outside the apprentices' den. She glanced to the empty entrance of Firestar's den. "We'll be late if he doesn't show soon."

Honeypaw flicked her tail on her flank. "Oh stop worrying. The other Clans aren't going anywhere and they wouldn't dare start the Gathering without us."

Dawnpaw sighed. Her paws were itching to leave the camp without having to train with Sorreltail. She needed the small dose of freedom that the short journey allowed. Twitching her ear, Dawnpaw turned her head away, scanning the clearing of her Clanmates that would be going to the Gathering. Protesting mews reached her ears from across the camp and she rested her gaze on Ferncloud, who was carrying Robinkit away from the other kits toward the nursery.

A twinge of sadness caused Dawnpaw to grimace. Ferncloud had been devastated over the loss of her son and with only two kits left out of her three litters, she had become even more protective of Robinkit, keeping her close at all times.

"She's only grieving," Honeypaw murmured, following her line of sight.

"I know," Dawnpaw told her, "But isn't she going overboard on this?"

Honeypaw just stared at her. "She's lost four kits altogether," she pointed out. "Mothers shouldn't have to watch their kits die and bury them."

Dawnpaw nodded and looked away, finding Squirrelflight across the clearing under the overhang with Brambleclaw pressed close against her. Their heads were bent toward each other and their tails entwined together. Remembering the times that Squirrelflight had been worried for her kits, she suddenly felt ashamed to question Ferncloud's protective nature.

"I'll be extremely happy when Berrypaw moves out of our den!" Poppypaw exclaimed, plopping down beside Dawnpaw, dropping her chin onto her paws with an exaggerated sigh.

"What's wrong with Berrypaw?" Honeypaw asked her sister. Though she sounded genuinely curious, Dawnpaw caught the slightly defensive aspect of her tone.

"He's just so frustrating! He thinks that he's above every other cat just because he's Brambleclaw's apprentice!" Poppypaw exclaimed, huffing indignantly. "I wish Redpaw would say something to shut him up, but I doubt that that's going to happen. They've both got their heads in the clouds."

"He'll be in the warriors' den soon enough, badgering the older cats," Dawnpaw pointed out. "Berrypaw and his siblings have been apprentices for a while now."

Honeypaw nodded. "About two seasons," she meowed. "The apprentices' den is getting too crowded."

"It's going to be even worse once the kits move in, but that's moons away," Poppypaw added. "I'm just hoping that Firestar will make Berrypaw a warrior soon before my ears fall off from all of his bragging."

"He isn't that terrible," Honeypaw told her, causing Poppypaw's head to swivel around as she stared at her sister, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Are you kidding me? I bet StarClan could hear his incessant voice!"

Honeypaw averted her eyes and she stared at her paws. Her ears flattened to her head in embarrassment at defending Berrypaw. "Well…what I meant was…you just haven't seen him when he isn't around another cat to show off to."

"How can you defend—" Poppypaw began, but then cut herself off as she realized something. Her eyes brightening and her tail twitching excitedly, she exclaimed, "You like Berrypaw!"

"Shh!" Honeypaw snapped, glancing around nervously. "Someone will hear you!"

"You two look great together," Dawnpaw offered, cutting off Poppypaw as she began to say something a little loudly.

Honeypaw looked to her, her eyes glimmering with gratitude. "Thanks Dawnpaw."

"So, Dawnpaw," Poppypaw turned on Dawnpaw with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Speaking of relationships, what's going on with you and Mousepaw?"

Dawnpaw's eyes went wide in surprise before she felt a brief flash of anger. Why did every cat think that there was something going on between them? She'd hardly ever talked to him before there were apprentices together! "Poppypaw," she sighed exasperatedly, "There is _nothing_ between Mousepaw and I. Seriously! He's a friend, I guess, but I don't like him that way at all."

Poppypaw tossed away her words. "I know that Mousepaw really likes you."

"Poppypaw, drop it," Dawnpaw told her shortly, done with the whole subject. The tortoiseshell and white she-cat snapped her jaw shut, thoroughly seizing any more teases.

"Finally!" Honeypaw exclaimed, rising onto all four of her paws. Dawnpaw lifted her gaze, spotting Firestar's dark ginger fur glinting in the barely suppressed moonlight. He leaped down the tumble of rocks and into the clearing as the cats began to gather around him, impatient to leave.

Dawnpaw shook herself as she padded forward with Honeypaw and Poppypaw. _It's about time,_ she thought disgruntledly. _What was taking him so long?_

And then the ThunderClan leader broke out in a series of furious coughs. He trembled as his chest heaved to catch his breath afterwards. Dawnpaw's eyes widened in horror. _He's sick!_

Sandstorm laid her tail across his shoulders and Leafpool was at his side in a heartbeat. "You shouldn't go to the Gathering like this," the light brown tabby murmured to him. She gave him a gentle nudge back to his den. "Brambleclaw can address the Clans. When we get back I'll give you herbs for your cough."

Firestar just nodded assent and allowed Sandstorm to lead him back to his den. Dawnpaw watched until his tail-tip disappeared into the darkness. Then her head swiveled around and she spied Brambleclaw amongst the cats. His amber eyes were alight with worry but he blinked and they reverted to plain determination.

"For now, we leave Firestar to rest. We must attend the Gathering," Brambleclaw meowed and the ThunderClan cats raised their voices in agreement. He turned and with an assertive flick of his tail, he led them into the tunnel.

The trees flashed by with a rush and Dawnpaw relished in the natural feeling of security underneath the forest canopy. The earthy smells of home, however, faded as they left the forest behind and they sidled up near the lakeshore. Dawnpaw wrinkled her nose up in disgust as WindClan scents registered. They had passed into WindClan territory.

Dawnpaw felt the fur along her spine begin to prickle as the WindClan scent washed over her. Despite the mutual agreement that helped save Snowkit and the kits, she knew that the peace would most certainly come to pass. She was nervous of WindClan finding that their leader was sick. They would see it as a sign of weakness, she knew.

ThunderClan was the last to arrive at the Gathering. The full moon was nearly perfectly overhead and as Brambleclaw leaped up in Firestar's place, the other leaders all shared shocked glances and murmuring broke out among the cats below.

Dawnpaw followed Honeypaw through the cats with Poppypaw. It was only when a tail brushed her shoulder did she stop and turn to face the white she-cat. "Whitetail," she greeted, dipping her head to the older cat.

"Hello Dawnpaw." Though her voice was reserved, Dawnpaw could see the warmth in her eyes. Confusion swept through her. _Why is a WindClan cat being kind to _me?

"Is there something you wanted to tell me…" Dawnpaw trailed, unsure of Whitetail.

The white WindClan warrior just twitched her ear. "I wanted to ask how Snowkit was doing. The poor thing. He didn't look too well when you took him away."

"He's doing fine. He was up and terrorizing the camp the next day," Dawnpaw joked lightly.

"Let the Gathering begin!"

The yowl from Blackstar rang around the clearing, silencing the cats swarming below. Dawnpaw turned to Whitetail to say goodbye, but she had already disappeared. Shrugging it off, she maneuvered through the crowd and settled between Whitewing and Cinderpaw.

Dawnpaw lifted her face to the leaders as Blackstar spoke. "ShadowClan has been well for the past moon and the prey has been running. We thank StarClan for the peaceful moon."

Leopardstar stepped up to take his place. "The fish in the lake are becoming scarcer and scarcer as Leaf-fall approaches but we have made do. We go to sleep with full bellies and satisfied hearts."

Brambleclaw crept forward. Though he was trying to hide it, Dawnpaw could see the tiny nervous gleam in his eyes. "Tonight, Firestar has fallen ill and was unable to lead ThunderClan to the Gathering. I stand to take his place. We mourn the loss of Birchfall this past moon. He was killed by a badger that moved to ShadowClan territory."

Blackstar nodded to him as Brambleclaw paused for a moment. Dawnpaw felt the guilt knotting in her belly. If she hadn't been so _slow_…

"On a lighter note, ThunderClan would like to thank WindClan for the rescue of one of our adventurous kits," Brambleclaw dipped his head to Onestar, who nodded, but his gaze was frosty.

Brambleclaw backed away into the shadows and Onestar shuffled forward. "Today we welcome Harespring to his first Gathering as a warrior."

There was light praise for the newest warrior and Dawnpaw craned her neck to pick him out in the crowd, a brown and white tom sitting with his chest fur puffed out and chin raised proudly. She heard Cinderpaw snorted softly by her ear. "He's just as bad as Berrypaw!"

Dawnpaw nodded in agreement and she turned her head back to face the leaders. Onestar announced the end of the Gathering. Dawnpaw watched as he was the first to leap down onto the ground and race into the trees toward the tree-bridge, his warriors hurrying after him.

Brambleclaw picked his way out of the tree before trotting over to the ThunderClan cats. Making sure that all of them were present, he led them out of the clearing to the tree-bridge, just as the rest of the WindClan cats finished.

After each cat was successful in crossing, Brambleclaw turned them back toward the ThunderClan territory. The trek was slow-going and Dawnpaw's paws felt as if they were stuck to the grass as she plodded behind Cinderpaw.

Finally, she was in her warm nest, curled up with her tail resting over her nose. It was only a few heartbeats until sleep claimed her.

* * *

><p>She was back in StarClan and Redtail was sitting directly in front of her, his face still, but his eyes glinted in the moonlight. "There is battle coming."<p>

Dawnpaw blinked before rolling her eyes. "You've already told me this, you know."

"You must be prepared," he continued.  
>"I'm ready to fight, if that's what you mean," Dawnpaw told him.<p>

"By the time this feud is over, there will be more than one battle that has been fought," Redtail continued in a monotone voice.

"Okay," Dawnpaw replied lazily, "Fine, don't elaborate."

"Dawnpaw, you must take this warning seriously," a blue-gray form materialized beside Redtail. Bluestar.

"What am I supposed to do about it?" Dawnpaw challenged, her temper getting the best of her. "You haven't told me anything besides that there will be more than one battle. What am I supposed to do with that?"

Bluestar sighed. "You will come to see the truth, Dawnpaw. There is more to you than meets the eye. Don't underestimate yourself."

"But there isn't anything special about me!" Dawnpaw protested. "What am I besides the deputy's daughter and the leader's granddaughter?"

"Don't underestimate yourself," a ghostly murmur sounded just behind her.

"Cloudwhisker?" Dawnpaw turned her head, but he wasn't there. Turning her head back, she gasped in shock. He was sitting in front of her, hardly a tail-length away.

"Do not underestimate yourself, Dawnpaw," he repeated, leaning forward to press his muzzle against hers. Her eyes widened in surprise at the sudden affectionate gesture. He pulled away slightly before skimming his nose lightly over the healing scratches on her cheek. The ones that he had caused. He met her gaze and Dawnpaw felt her legs tremble under the intensity in his dark blue eyes. "You are stronger than you think."

Unable to reply properly, she just nodded. Cloudwhisker purred softly before he pulled away and Dawnpaw was able to breathe again.

Bluestar padded forward. She stretched her head forward to press her nose against Dawnpaw's. "You will understand soon, Dawnpaw. But you _are_ special, do not forget that."

Dawnpaw nodded again, though she was still entirely confused. "You are needed back in ThunderClan," Bluestar whispered. "Be safe."

"Yes Bluestar," Dawnpaw meowed just before her senses faded to black.

* * *

><p>"Intruders! Intruders in the camp!" some cat was yowling. Dawnpaw's eyes snapped open and she leaped to her paws. Around her, her denmates were groggily getting to their paws.<p>

Dawnpaw, her heart pounding in her chest, hurried to leave the den. Once in the clearing, she froze. Cats filed in through the entrance tunnel and the ThunderClan warriors were blinking sleep from their eyes as they were overrun.

Horror washed through Dawnpaw as she realized that WindClan was attacking the camp. Her vision was going to come true.

**I know, not my best work. There wasn't much action in this at all, but I can promise that the next few chapters will be packed with it. Now for the long awaited battle scene between ThunderClan and WindClan. What do you think, huh? Is Thornclaw going to die?**


	16. Chapter 15

**I haven't really got anything to say up here, though the Author's Note at the bottom is kind of important. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Lots of action and a little drama, too.**

**Don't forget to review! They're my favorite! :)**

"Dawnpaw, move!" Redpaw pushed against her from behind as he tried to exit the apprentices' den. Honeypaw hurried out after him, her light blue eyes widened in terror as she spotted the WindClan cats streaming into the camp.

Berrypaw stumbled out of the den in a drunken stupor, still weary from sleep. "Wha' goin' on?"

"Wake up, mousebrain," Cinderpaw hissed to him, giving him a shove and a stern glance. "WindClan is attacking."

Berrypaw blinked several times before he digested that information. As it finally dawned on him and the battle yowls reached his ears, he growled and shot off into the fray. Hazeltail followed him, rolling her eyes and mumbling under her breath, "He's going to get himself killed just running off like that."

Dawnpaw was still frozen in her state of complete shock. _No, this cannot be happening! We can't lose anymore cats!_ A flash of anger burned in her belly. Bluestar had known this would happen! Why didn't she tell her that WindClan would be attacking? Dawnpaw could have warned Firestar!

Then it dawned on her and she realized that WindClan had been waiting for this moment. ThunderClan was without their leader in full health. Firestar was weak and sick. _Cowards!_

Fury flashed in her glowing green eyes and she felt the fur along her spine rising and her claws itched to shed blood on the sandy ground of her home. Unsheathing her claws, Dawnpaw located the nearest sparring pair.

Brook floundered under the ginger and white tom standing over her, pinning her shoulders to the ground. With a feral hiss, Dawnpaw raced to the tabby she-cat's aid. She leaped onto the tom's back, latching onto the flesh and fur there. The tom howled in pain and loosened his grip on Brook. She slithered out from under him, righting herself.

Dawnpaw retreated as she felt the tom's muscles clench in preparation of his disarming roll. She'd rather not be smothered by a mouthful of fur. Taking advantage of his momentary weak state, Brook sprang forward and dove onto his belly, slicing at his exposed belly and twirling away before he could lash out again in all of his anger.

Spitting furiously, the tom retreated into the battle, leaving the two to catch their breaths. "Thanks, Dawnpaw," Brook panted, leaning down to lap at a scratch on her flank. Dawnpaw nodded to her, her fur fluffed up in all the excitement of battle. Adrenaline coursed through her and she felt as if she could run all the way to the Moonpool and back.

Brook rejoined the battle after a moment's rest, heading toward Stormfur, who fought a warrior and his apprentice.

Dawnpaw looked around for her next target. Cinderpaw and Redpaw fought a warrior together a few mouselengths away; Brackenfur battled a large tabby tom close by; and Sorreltail was being easily tired by a brown and white tom Dawnpaw recognized as Harespring and the WindClan deputy, Ashfoot.

Dawnpaw lashed out as Harespring neared her and caught his hind leg with her claws. Hissing in pain, Harespring whirled around, towering over her. Though he was taller than Dawnpaw, he was skinnier and probably weighed less. Shooting between his legs, Dawnpaw reared up, thoroughly lifted and tossing Harespring onto the ground. Immediately, she pounced onto him, pressing his shoulders into the dirt.

Too late, Dawnpaw realized as his claws caught her underside and she hissed, but didn't release him. "Try it again, rabbit-breath," she growled, gouging scratches into his cheek. Blood welled between her claws as she pressed down on his shoulders harder, staining the sand with droplets of scarlet.

Seeing the mixture of fear and pain in Harespring's eyes, Dawnpaw let him go, watching as he fled across the clearing with satisfaction bubbling in her belly.

Suddenly, a solid wall of fur collided with her and she gasped, landing heavily on her back. A haze of black dots swam across her vision and Dawnpaw blinked. Claws raked at her shoulders and the blood pounded in her ears. After regaining her sight, Dawnpaw stared up into a pair of blue eyes gazing down at her.

"Are ThunderClan cats always this easy to beat?" he taunted gleefully and Dawnpaw's fury sparked.

Dawnpaw angrily, slashed her claws down the length of his dark belly fur, but he didn't even flinch. She desperately tried to rear up under his hold, but his paws pressed her shoulders down firmly against the ground. The tom's shoulders shook as he chuckled at her failed attempts to free herself.

"Dawnpaw!"

Dawnpaw turned her head just in time to see Squirrelflight leap into the air and catch the tom off guard. She sent him sprawling on the ground and landed lightly on the ground with a twist of her body. "Leave my daughter alone, Crowfeather," she spat.

Dawnpaw scrambled to her paws, ignoring the stinging in her shoulders and belly. Crowfeather shook himself as he rose to his paws with his back arched and lips peeled back in a snarl.

"Just because you have a grudge against Leafpool for leaving you doesn't mean you attack any cat associated with her," Squirrelflight hissed, her eyes flaring dangerously and her voice dripping with venom.

"She doesn't deserve the justice you give her," Crowfeather growled.

"If you touch any of my kits again, you'll find yourself in StarClan faster than you can say 'mouse'," Squirrelflight snapped and Dawnpaw felt a flash of appreciation for her mother's protectiveness for her and her siblings.

Crowfeather refused to submit. He crouched low to the ground with a wild look in his eyes. He growled viciously before springing forward into the air, leaping toward Dawnpaw with his paws outstretched…

Squirrelflight met him midair and she brought a paw down on his head, and he dropped to the ground with a 'thump'. Squirrelflight snorted as she surveyed his unconscious body. "I told you."

Dawnpaw padded to her, reaching out to rub her forehead against Squirrelflight's cheek. She curled into her mother, a purr rumbling in her chest. "Thank you," she breathed to her.

Squirrelflight rasped her tongue over Dawnpaw's ear. "Any time," she meowed before pulling away. "I'm going to go find your father."

Dawnpaw nodded. She averted her eyes away from Crowfeather's limp form. As she turned away from him, she heard a strangled yowl echoing from across the clearing that chilled her to the bone. Nearly trembling, Dawnpaw peered into the battle through the cats and she spotted the blood spilling over and contrasting with the light tan sandy ground. The flow of crimson came from a lump of golden-brown tabby fur lying still on the ground.

_Thornclaw._ Dawnpaw felt her heart skip a beat. Frantically, she shook her head, trying the get rid of the image of his lifeless body. _No, no. He can't be dead. Don't let my vision be true, StarClan. I should have done something to stop this! I'm so stupid. I saw this happening, and I did nothing!_

"_You are stronger than you think," _Dawnpaw shivered as Cloudwhisker's words echoed in her mind.

Gazing around at the battle surrounding her, Dawnpaw felt her breath coming in short gasps. "I have to stop this," she murmured to herself. Determination flared in her chest and she lifted her gaze to the Highledge that was vacant of any life.

Dawnpaw pushed off with her hind legs, dashing across the clearing. Climbing the tumble of rocks, she skidded to a halt at the entrance to Firestar's den, casting a shadow inside. Peering into the darkness, she spotted Firestar lying in his nest on his side. As she crept forward, Dawnpaw could hear the shallow breaths he took and her hopes plummeted. Would he be strong enough to stop the battle?

"Firestar?" she called hesitantly, not very sure of her plan anymore.

One of his paws twitched and he lifted his head weakly. "Dawnpaw," he greeted quietly. He looked about to say more but he was interrupted by a bout of furious coughs.

"WindClan is invading," Dawnpaw told him.

"So I've heard," Firestar joked lightly. He peered at her, his green eyes glowing softly in the suppressed moonlight shining in from outside.

"I…I didn't…" Dawnpaw searched for words to explain what she was there for. She took a deep breath to settle herself. "Thornclaw is dead."

Firestar shifted suddenly at her words. He braced himself using his paws and, trembling, rose to his paws. "Help me to the Highledge," he rasped and Dawnpaw stared, wide-eyed, at him.

Shuffling forward, Dawnpaw let him lean on her shoulder for support. Carefully and slowly, they made their way to the den entrance and Dawnpaw helped him to the Highledge, where they looked down at the battling cats below.

"Stop!" Firestar's commanding yowl rang around the clearing and Dawnpaw watched as the cats stilled and looked up at the ThunderClan leader. "Onestar, where are you?"

The WindClan leader shuffled forward, leaving a bleeding Spiderleg to pull away. The light brown tabby tom narrowed his eyes up at Firestar. "What do you want, kittypet?"

Firestar ignored the jab at his heritage. "How dare you bring your warriors into my camp? How dare you attack ThunderClan at its weakest? You are a cowardly fool."

"No more of a fool than you, Firestar," Onestar spat icily. "You provoked this battle. Do not start something you cannot end."

"What was your goal for tonight's battle?" Firestar fired back calmly. "To wipe out ThunderClan? To teach us a lesson? Your motivation in itself is a crime against the warrior code. Honor and justice is brought to those who deserve it, Onestar. Now get out of my camp before I rip your pelt to shreds."

Dawnpaw looked up at Firestar in awe at his authority and speech. He easily shot down Onestar's attacks with a calm demeanor and ready retorts. _That was amazing how he handled it,_ Dawnpaw thought, _he's a great leader._

Onestar gave one lasting hiss before he whipped around and stalked out of the camp through the entrance tunnel. His warriors followed after him and with a twinge of satisfaction, Dawnpaw spotted Crowfeather leaving with a painful-looking belly scratch and limp.

Once every last WindClan cat had gone, Dawnpaw looked back up at Firestar. She opened her mouth to praise him, but she fell short when his body shuddered and his eyes rolled back into his head as he fell limp. Dawnpaw gasped as she solely supported him and very carefully lowered him onto the stone. "Leafpool!" she cried without looking around. "Firestar's gone unconscious!"

"I'm here," a warm voice murmured in her ear and Dawnpaw turned her head to see Leafpool already at her side with a packet of herbs in her jaws. Looking past the medicine cat, Dawnpaw spotted Sandstorm racing up the tumble of rocks to get to her mate.

Dawnpaw backed away, knowing that she wasn't needed there any longer. She retreated down the rocks and breathed a sigh of relief as the pads of her paws touched the ground in the clearing.

"Dawnpaw, that was awesome!" the small voice called out and Dawnpaw shifted her gaze to Snowkit as he bounded toward her with Robinkit at his heels. "We saw you up on the Highledge with Firestar!"

Robinkit nodded affirmation. "Ferncloud wouldn't let us fight but we peeked out of the nursery when she wasn't looking," the kit mewed and Dawnpaw purred in amusement at her excitement.

"You would have sent those warriors running for the hills," she encouraged the both of them, crouching down so that she was at their height.

"We told Ferncloud that, but she wouldn't listen to us!" Snowkit meowed resentfully.

"Yeah—" Robinkit began but she cut herself off. Her blue eyes widened. "Dawnpaw, you're bleeding!"

Dawnpaw followed her gaze and saw with a start that the blood from the shallow gash in her belly was leaking onto the sand underneath her. However, the pain was receding somewhat. "I'm fine, Robinkit," she assured.

"But you're bleeding!" Snowkit persisted, eyes round as an owl's. "You're hurt!"

"Snowkit, I'm _fine_," Dawnpaw rolled her eyes. "The scratch isn't very deep and it doesn't hurt very much."

Robinkit stared up at her. "You're so brave," she sighed wistfully. "I hope I'll be as good as you one day."

Dawnpaw touched her nose to the kit's ear. "You'll learn and when the time comes you'll make a great warrior. Just wait and see. I'll help you if you want."

Robinkit gave a little bounce of excitement. "Thanks Dawnpaw, you're the best!"

As Ferncloud called to the kits to retire to the nursery, Robinkit retreated and Snowkit followed after her, glancing back at Dawnpaw with wondering eyes.

Dawnpaw straightened and she looked around. A lump formed in her throat as her gaze fell upon Thornclaw's body lying in the moonlight. Brightheart mourned over her lost sibling with Cloudtail at her side. Brackenfur, Brightheart's and Thornclaw's older brother, had his head bowed and Sorreltail laid a comforting tail on his shoulder.

Dawnpaw forced herself to look away, and the padding of pawsteps sounded behind her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw that Leafpool was approaching her with a weary gleam in her eyes. The light brown tabby medicine cat came to a stop at her side and all was silent for several heartbeats.

"Firestar lost a life."

Dawnpaw whipped her head around to stare at her in shock. "What?" her jaw dropped open.

"He's resting comfortably now. His sickness has gone with his old life," Leafpool informed her.

"H-How many lives does he have left?" Dawnpaw asked.

"This is his fourth life," Leafpool sighed and Dawnpaw blinked in surprise. She hadn't realized that her leader had lost so many lives already.

"Thank you for telling me," Dawnpaw murmured and Leafpool nodded, already starting to pad away.

"I'll inspect your wounds later," she called over her shoulder as she headed to Brambleclaw.

Dawnpaw sighed heavily, suddenly feeling so tired. Her eyelids were weighed down and drooped low. She could fall asleep right then and there…

"I'm proud of you, Dawnpaw."

She groaned. _Can't I just get a break?_

Turning her head, she saw Bluestar sitting about a foxlength away. Her blue-gray pelt shimmered with stardust and her blue eyes glowed brightly. Glancing over her shoulder, Dawnpaw realized that no other cat could see the former ThunderClan leader.

"How can you be proud of me? I saw this battle before it even happened! I should have recognized everything, and then maybe Thornclaw wouldn't have died," Dawnpaw meowed.

"Yes, but even with that shadow of doubt, you still managed to stop the battle before any more serious damage occurred," Bluestar pointed out.

Dawnpaw shrugged. "That's another thing. How was I able to see the battle in my dreams long before it took place?"

Something in Bluestar's eyes flickered briefly. "You'll learn the answer to that soon enough. For now, you must recover after the battle. When the time is right, all you will need to know shall be revealed to you."

"But—"

"Sleep soundly," Bluestar meowed sternly. She leaned down to touch her nose to Dawnpaw's forehead. "There will be no nightmares or dreams for you tonight."

Dawnpaw nodded and Bluestar dipped her head in farewell to her before her image shimmered and then disappeared without a trace.

Sighing, Dawnpaw lifted her face to the lightening sky. The stars were becoming fainter with each passing heartbeat as the sun rose on the horizon and the moon dipped low in the sky. Faintly, Dawnpaw wondered if Cloudwhisker could see her. _If he can, I hope he's proud of me, too._

**Oh gosh, I just wrote that for four hours straight with hardly any breaks. I gotta admit, it was kind of hard to figure out what I should include in this battle. I think I did okay, though. Well, one more ThunderClan warrior down and the end of this story is nearing. I'm thinking that either the next chapter or the one after next will be the last one, depending on how I write it. Next chapter, though, I can promise will be interesting as Dawnpaw's part in all of this will be partially revealed. Poppypaw gets a new mentor and some other ceremonies will be carried out, too.**


	17. Chapter 16

Dawnpaw basked in the warmth the sun had to offer. Her belly was pressed to the ground, lathered with a fresh layer of marigold to take care of any infection of her scratches. Honeypaw and Cinderpaw lay with her, lapping at their fur.

Looking around the clearing, she realized that many cats still remained in the camp. Usually by sunhigh most of the patrols would have gone out and cats would be bringing back dinner for the night. Dawnpaw turned her head to her companions. "Is there something going on today I don't know about?"

Honeypaw looked up from her washing and nodded. "Berrypaw and his siblings are getting their warrior names today."

"About time, too," Cinderpaw added. "They've been apprentices ever since you were born."

Dawnpaw snorted, "No wonder Berrypaw was always so grumpy."

Cinderpaw nodded absentmindedly and she glanced to the apprentices' den, where Poppypaw was still sleeping. "Poor Poppypaw. She's been upset ever since Thornclaw's death. At least her new mentor is experienced."

Dawnpaw spotted Ashfur across the clearing, sharing tongues with Stormfur.

A flash of ginger fur caught her eye and she lifted her gaze to see Firestar standing atop the Highledge. "All cats old enough to catch their own prey come beneath the Highledge for a Clan meeting!"

Dawnpaw got to her paws and licked down a patch of upturned fur before stretching. Straightening, she padded closer to the Highledge with Honeypaw as Cinderpaw woke Poppypaw. They joined the other apprentices and looked up to Firestar as he began to speak.

"Today, we will grant three apprentices their long-awaited warrior names," he began and Dawnpaw glanced back over her shoulder to where Berrypaw, Mousepaw, and Hazelpaw were coming forward, their fur groomed down nicely and eyes shining. Looking past them, Dawnpaw saw Daisy sitting outside the nursery, her eyes glowing with pride as she watched her kits march forward. "Have they earned their warrior names?" he asked their mentors, huddled off to the side. Each of them nodded affirmation.

Firestar leaped down the Highledge and he met the apprentices at the end of their journey. Beckoning to him with his tail, he brought Berrypaw forward first. "I, Firestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn. Berrypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Berrypaw nodded. "I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Berrypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Berrytail. StarClan honors your enthusiasm and bravery and we welcome you as full warrior of ThunderClan."

Firestar rested his muzzle atop Berrytail's head and the cream warrior licked Firestar's shoulder, finalizing the ceremony. "Berrytail, Berrytail!" the Clan chanted as Berrytail stepped back to allow Hazelpaw to go forward.

Firestar turned to her. "Hazelpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," Hazelpaw replied, her voice full of certainty.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Hazelpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Hazelsplash. StarClan honors your courage and determination and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

Firestar leaned forward and rested his muzzle on her head and she rasped her tongue over his shoulder before pulling away going to join her cream brother as the Clan shouted her new name.

Mousepaw was nearly trembling with barely suppressed excitement as he took his sister's place. He looked up at Firestar with anticipation. Dawnpaw could see the amusement in the ThunderClan leader's eyes as he began again. "Mousepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code, and protect and defend this Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," Mousepaw exclaimed.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Mousepaw, from this moment on you will be known as Mouseclaw. StarClan honors your loyalty and patience and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan."

Firestar finished the ceremony and rested his muzzle lastly on Mouseclaw's head and the gray and white tom licked his shoulder. Mouseclaw pulled away and went to his siblings as they basked in the praises and congratulations together. "Berrytail! Hazelsplash! Mouseclaw!"

Poppypaw groaned suddenly and Dawnpaw looked at her. "What?"

"Berrytail is going to worse than ever now," Poppypaw replied, sounding sullen. She flattened her ears and retreated back toward the apprentices' den. Dawnpaw watched her leave, bewildered at her ever-changing moods.

"I can't believe that I would ever be that upset if I lost my mentor," Honeypaw meowed skeptically, watching Poppypaw's retreating figure. "I mean, Sandstorm is really amazing, but she's acting like—"

Dawnpaw watched as her eyes grew wide and she froze in mi-sentence. "What is it?" she asked.

A mischievous spark glimmered in Honeypaw's eyes. "I was going to say that she's acting as if she had lost her mate."

Dawnpaw tilted her head slightly to the side and pondered the thought. "She never said anything about it," Dawnpaw began, but she had to admit that she didn't know Poppypaw that well.

"I think that she loved Thornclaw," Honeypaw persisted. "Poor Poppypaw."

Dawnpaw nodded in somber agreement, glancing to the apprentices' den where Poppypaw's tortoiseshell tail had just disappeared into.

Looking back at Honeypaw, she realized that Berrytail had already materialized beside her. "Do you want to go hunting with me? Sandstorm said it was alright as long as I was back before I have to hold my vigil."

Honeypaw's eyes sparkled. "Sure," she agreed warmly. She sent Dawnpaw an excited glance before following him out of camp. Dawnpaw rolled her eyes. Poppypaw wasn't the only one padding after another cat.

Dawnpaw peeked through the branches of the bush into the moonlit clearing. There, in the center, Bluestar and Redtail awaited her. Her paws tingled with anticipation and she desperately wanted to run to them to hear an explanation for all her dreams and the vision of the battle and Thornclaw's death, but anxiety overwhelmed her.

Before all of the dreams began, she had been a normal apprentice training to become a ThunderClan warrior. She hadn't been bothered with StarClan or the Dark Forest until then. What if everything got worse? What if she couldn't focus on her apprentice duties? What if whatever Bluestar had to tell her wasn't a good thing at all?

"Go on," a warm voice meowed and a cat nudged her from behind her. Dawnpaw glanced over her shoulder and her fears suddenly melted away as she met Cloudwhisker's dark blue gaze.

Dawnpaw nodded after a moment and she crept forward out of the undergrowth and into the clearing with Cloudwhisker right behind her. He stopped short a few tail-lengths away from Bluestar and Dawnpaw shot him a curious glance before pausing in front of the former leader of ThunderClan and her deputy.

"Your tense, Dawnpaw," Bluestar remarked, "Calm down. Nothing bad will happen to you here." She touched her nose to Dawnpaw's forehead briefly in an almost affectionate way. Dawnpaw sighed and she allowed her coiled muscles to relax.

Redtail nodded. "Before we tell you everything you must know, understand that you must keep an open mind."

Hesitantly, Dawnpaw agreed. "Okay."

Bluestar began. "Seasons ago, Firestar was given a prophecy stating that three kin of his kin would have more power than that of StarClan as a whole."

"But…that could mean me and my siblings, or Cloudtail's kits," Dawnpaw meowed. "How could you know which three of us the prophecy is talking about?"

"Dawnpaw, do you remember the dream you had about the battle with WindClan and Thornclaw's death? The dream that soon became reality?" Redtail prompted.

Dawnpaw nodded. "Of course, but it never stayed the same. There were differences every time I experienced it."

"That is because the future is never always the same. It changes as every day goes by."

"The future?" Dawnpaw echoed. "What do you mean?"

"We told you that you were special, Dawnpaw," Cloudwhisker meowed from behind her.

Dawnpaw stared, wide-eyed, up at the StarClan cats. "Do you mean that I saw the future?"

"Yes, you can see the future, or at least little bits of it," Bluestar told her. "The other two cats will reveal themselves given time, and each will have their own power to call their own, one that will help to bring down the Dark Forest."

"The Dark Forest? What have they got to do with anything?" Dawnpaw asked.

"Tigerstar wanted you to be a part of the Dark Forest for a reason, Dawnpaw. Though he didn't know yet which of Firestar's kin would be the three in the prophecy, he targeted you and your siblings first," Redtail meowed.

"Now that your power has come to light, it won't take long for the Dark Forest to realize that they've lost the first of you. They'll try even harder to find the other two, which means that your siblings and Brightheart's kits are in danger of a visit from Tigerstar."

"What about that other cat?" Dawnpaw asked, recalling her most recent trip to the Dark Forest. "Ebonylight, her name was."

"She's been in the Dark Forest for longer than Tigerstar has, much longer. Though she is smaller than Tigerstar or Hawkfrost, she's still formidable and no stranger to battles," Bluestar meowed gravely.

"No need to worry about her for right now, though," Cloudwhisker meowed a little hastily, moving forward so that he sat with his flank pressed against Dawnpaw's. "All you have to do for now is keep a lookout for the other two cats. Their powers should be developing soon, so you won't have to wait very long until they start to show some potential."

Dawnpaw nodded. "What about my visions?" she asked. "What am I supposed to do about them?"

"For now, they'll remain in your dreams," Bluestar told her. "Though I'm not sure when, but they will begin to grow stronger and more insightful. Don't push away these dreams of the future, Dawnpaw. Some of them may be very important for the times to come. We know that they are limited right now because the future is not set in stone as I said, but if they are vital your subconscious will replay them each night if need be."

Dawnpaw felt as if there was a lump in her throat as she readied her next question, glancing anxiously at Cloudwhisker. "Sometimes I not only see the future," she began and Bluestar tilted her head slightly in interest. "I've seen parts of some other cat's life."

"And you can recall them while you're awake?" Bluestar asked, sounding appalled. She felt Cloudwhisker's eyes on her and Dawnpaw squirmed slightly.

"Yes," she replied.

"For now, don't worry about these dreams. You have a connection to Sundapple that is hard to explain at this point in time," Bluestar meowed and Dawnpaw bristled slightly in anger.

"Fine, then if I'm so close to her, how come I never see her during my visits here?" she demanded and her eyes flashed with triumph as Bluestar nor Redtail answered her or met her gaze. "I'm not a kit. Why do I have to be treated as if I need to be protected from the truth? How bad can it be?"

"Dawnpaw, understand that it isn't because you need to be protected from it," Cloudwhisker meowed.

"Then what?" Dawnpaw turned to him. "I'm sick of this. As if I don't have enough to worry about with assessments and Sorreltail biting my ears off because I can't focus well enough _because_ I'm too busy thinking about something else. You and every other cat tell me that I have to do this and do that but there isn't any explanation as to why I'm doing it!"

Dawnpaw whipped around and stalked out of the clearing, her tail flicking in Cloudwhisker's face as she retreated. Glancing once over her shoulder, she felt satisfied at Cloudwhisker's expression of surprise and Bluestar's and Redtail's downcast, guilt-ridden gazes.

Maybe it would have been better if I joined the Dark Forest instead, Dawnpaw thought briefly before pushing it away. Despite her agitation toward certain cats in StarClan, she wasn't about to join the darker side of her warrior ancestors.

Stomping through the undergrowth, Dawnpaw navigated the bushes and low-lying branches with ease. Here, she knew that no cat would stop her, unlike if she strayed into WindClan or ShadowClan territory. She was free to roam wherever she liked without any boundaries, so long as she didn't go into the Dark Forest.

"Dawnpaw!"

Dawnpaw rolled her eyes, but didn't stop to face Cloudwhisker, nor did she look back at him. The crashing of leaves and branches already gave her a clue that he was racing toward her. "Dawnpaw, stop!"

Dawnpaw marched on ahead, ignoring him completely. See if he likes it, she thought snidely. His hurried pawsteps neared and she stubbornly ignored the fluttering of her heart as his scent washed over her. His face swam into her line of vision as he planted himself in front of her. "Dawnpaw, stop."

Dawnpaw halted, looked up at him, and then pushed past him. "What do you want, Cloudwhisker? Just leave me alone right now."

Cloudwhisker scoffed from behind her. "Leave you alone? If I just left, you would somehow find your way into some kind of trouble."

"Then find me some other guardian, because frankly, you are the most annoying furball I've ever met," Dawnpaw retorted as he trotted beside her.

"Care to explain?"

"You tell me to do things, not to do things, but you never tell me the reasons behind anything you tell me to do. You certainly don't explain yourself, either. You hurt me, but then you get concerned when some other cat hurts me. You change your mind over things and you're just so moody!"

"So in short," Cloudwhisker meowed, "You are displeased by my entire presence?"

Dawnpaw shot him an exasperated look. "Do you honestly need my confirmation on that? Did you not listen to a word I just told you?"

"Just checking," Cloudwhisker meowed breezily.

They padded on in silence for several moments before Dawnpaw cast a side-long glance at him, only to have her gaze flit away when she realized that he was already staring at her. Feeling a rush of warmth creeping up her neck and over her ears, Dawnpaw avoided his gaze. "What are you staring at me for?"

Using her peripheral vision, Dawnpaw saw Cloudwhisker shift and her gaze instantly flickered back to the center of movement. She barely had any time to react before he slid in closer to her and pushed his face closer to hers. Dawnpaw's steps and heartbeat faltered in surprise and her breath caught.

"Uh," she began nervously, trying desperately to ignore the fact that his fur was so warm pressed up against hers. "Cloudwhisker, I think you're a little too close…"

"You sure?" Cloudwhisker asked lightly. His eyes sparkled and Dawnpaw knew that he was enjoying this.

"Uh…" she trailed off.

After a heartbeat, Cloudwhisker pulled away with a deep chuckle of amusement. "I thought that you didn't like me around you?"

"I never said that I approved of what you just did," she replied defensively, trying to pull together an acceptable explanation for her falter in character. "I was only surprised."

"You're lying," Cloudwhisker observed calmly.

Dawnpaw bristled. "How would you know even if I was? You don't know me!"

"I do know you Dawnpaw. Better than you think, actually," Cloudwhisker meowed in a matter-of-factly way. He softened his voice, "You are a lot like Sundapple in some ways."

"But I am not Sundapple, Cloudwhisker," Dawnpaw retorted, and she swore that she saw him flinch, but it was so slight that she wondered if she had only imagined it.

"I know exactly who you are, Dawnpaw," Cloudwhisker murmured quietly. He settled his muzzle against hers briefly before continuing, "It's time for you to return to ThunderClan. Remember what Bluestar has shared with you and keep an open mind, everything can change in the matter of a heartbeat and you must be ready to accept change as it is. You will be experiencing lots more in the coming moons."

"Bye Cloudwhisker," Dawnpaw breathed before her vision blanked.

Dawnpaw's eyes snapped open and she inhaled a deep breath as her eyes adjusted quickly to the dim light of the apprentices' den. Blinking away sleep, she yawed widely. Slowly rising to her paws, she stretched in her nest, taking pleasure in having more room without Hazelsplash and her siblings keeping residence there.

Looking around after straightening and smoothing down her fur, she realized that all of her denmates were still fast asleep and she had awakened earlier than usual. Her dream still nagged at her every thought and the anxiety from her talk with Cloudwhisker fueled her adrenaline. Taking a walk in the forest sounds nice.

Stepping from the apprentices' den, Dawnpaw padded leisurely across the clearing to the tunnel entrance where Berrytail and Mouseclaw were stationed at for their vigil. Berrytail paid her no mind, but Mousetail gave her an inquiring look.

"I'm only going for a walk," she assured him. "I'll keep a lookout for WindClan warriors."

Mouseclaw still looked slightly reluctant but he just nodded and allowed her to pass. Dawnpaw trotted into the tunnel and out into the forest. Glad to be under more familiar trees, Dawnpaw sighed contently.

Trekking down a path leading to the lake, Dawnpaw took her time. No cat would be missing her—except maybe Sorreltail, but Mouseclaw would just tell her where she'd gone. At the moment, it was only her and the trees.

Her conversation with Bluestar and Redtail buzzed in her mind._ I have a power greater than StarClan. I can see the future!_

Then, a cold sensation swept over her fur and she shivered as the realization hit her. _If I had known that my dream was real, I could have saved Thornclaw._

"No," she spoke aloud, startling some prey in a patch of bushes off to the side. She ignored it. _There's no use blaming Bluestar for not telling me sooner. I just have to make sure that this never happens again. I won't be responsible for another cat's death like this._

Determination sparkled in Dawnpaw's green eyes as she continued through the forest. Her path took her to the end of the copse before the land sloped down to the lakeshore. Locating a small rocky outcropping along the line of trees, Dawnpaw settled on top and she turned her gaze to the horizon, where a thin line of crimson blending with a soft gray-blue announced that sunrise was almost there.

The sky shifted with the rising dawn and as the first rays of light peaked over the line of land in the distance, Dawnpaw breathed in calming scent of morning dew and forestry around her. A cool breeze wafted by her, bringing with it the scents of the lake and its fishy residences.

"I will find the other two," she vowed aloud, lifting her face to the rapidly fading shimmering stars. "The Dark Forest will not have them."

They glimmered back at her, a doubtful reassurance that StarClan had heard her promise. Dawnpaw, however, knew that Cloudwhisker was watching over her. No matter how much she complained about him, he was always there.

**That's it. Chapter 16 is done, meaning that Rising Dawn is finally completed! Oh, my fingers hurt after typing this. It's well-worth it though, I think. I really liked this last chapter and I promise that I'll have the sequel out soon. I want to thank everyone who has ever took the time to glance at this story that first sprung from my head about a year ago. Every review, favorite, and follow means so much to me and you guys are the main reason why I was ever able to finish! Thanks so much!**

**Anyways, I'll post an update when the sequel is posted, so be on the lookout! See you guys soon!**


	18. Sequel Update!

**Hey guys! So I decided to be a bit merciful and release a little bit of the Prologue for Crimson Red for you! I have most of it written, so I'll probably put it up either on Sunday or during next week. So, yes Crimson Red is the name of the sequel for RD.**

The forest was dark. Above the canopy of overflowing leaves there was a starless sky. There were no clouds obscuring the view here. There was no moon light the forest floor just enough to see a few mouselengths ahead of you. Here, cats were sentenced to a forever residence for their crimes.

A dark tabby pelt slid into the small, shadowy clearing. Despite the darkness surrounding him, his amber eyes glowed brightly, a dangerous gleam shining in his gaze. Padding forward, he showed his massive paws and strength in the rippling of his lean muscles.

"Tigerstar," a pitch black she-cat meowed with a measured voice. She sat in the center of the clearing, clearly waiting for him with her tail wrapped over her paws. "How did the meeting go?"

"It didn't," Tigerstar snarled, lashing his tail angrily. "Cloudwhisker stopped me from entering her dreams once again. I still don't know how he does it."

"You never told me that he's done this before," the she-cat commented with a slight edge to her voice.

"I didn't think anything of it before now," Tigerstar replied, growling as he paced in front of her.

"Try again tomorrow, then," the she-cat told him eagerly.

"Don't you get it?" Tigerstar spat. "Ebonyflight, she's untouchable now."

"That's impossible," Ebonyflight scoffed. "You just aren't trying hard enough to summon her."

"Don't undermine me," Tigerstar growled warningly.

"I will do whatever I want, Tigerstar," Ebonyflight hissed viciously, her eyes flashing. "You cannot stop me even if you wanted to. I've more power than you'll ever have."

Tigerstar hissed defiantly, his neck fur fluffed up. "And now we have lost one of the three prophesized either to destroy or aid us."

"There are six others that possibly have that power," Ebonyflight pointed out. "It won't be long until the other two begin to show their abilities."

"What about Cloudtail's first kit?" Tigerstar asked.

"She's already a warrior. If she had had any powers, she would have showed them by now," Ebonyflight dismissed the idea immediately. We only have two more chances to get one of the three on our side."

"We won't have to wait long," Tigerstar added. "I know that we're close."

"Don't fail me once again Tigerstar," Ebonyflight meowed warningly. She turned her head toward him, revealing her narrowed eyes. "If it had been any cat other than you, they would cease to exist by now."

Tigerstar dipped his head to her. "Of course Ebonyflight. I'll see you again once I have news."

"Have it soon," Ebonyflight advised as Tigerstar turned away. Her green gaze watching as he padded into the undergrowth, leaving her standing in silence.

**So how was it? I know it was a little short, but I'd rather not draw out the scene for too long. I just wanted to incorporate a scene for the Dark Forest and their evil ways. What do you guys think about Ebonyflight? She's been mentioned once before and I think that this reinstates her position in the Dark Forest and the power she holds. I rather like writing her part. It brings out the devious side of me. ;)**


	19. Sequel Update 2

Hi everyone! Just wanted to share that the Crimson Red prologue is up!


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